Beautiful Disaster
by Lady Ataralasse
Summary: Set before Rise of the Lycans, Aleeria is the mortal servant of a vampire. Her song comforts all those who hear it and longs for one who saved her as a child and Sabas longs for the girl who watches the Lycans everyday with a sad sweet smile. Sabas/OC
1. Angel of the Night

This one is dedicated to British Pixie, who sparked the idea and to Herves Vuin who will also hopefully enjoy my mind's unstoppable musings. I meant for this to be a one shot smut, but it grew into something else. No idea how big it may get, but I'll let it take the reins for now. In brackets, I put the music that guided my hands, while I wrote. A score if your will. Enjoy it if you feel so inclined.

A/N: This is not canon. Rise of the Lycans never happened. Also suggestions re: the summary are most welcome. Also the words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested.

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**Beautiful Disaster**

**Chapter 1: Angel of the Night**

[Now or Never]

Another night and the Lycans shifted restlessly in their cages, tussling with each other over food or out of boredom. Never the less, anyone watching would see all of their number periodically pause their activities and cock their ears to the night. They waited. Every night for over ten years now, a voice drifted through the darkness, rising with the moon and drifting down with the evening breezes. None of them knew who possessed this voice. It was dynamic, female, and utterly enchanting. It calmed their spirits as so little could in an endless string of days in unjust bondage.

Aleeria sat along the edge of her window seat high in one of the fortresses towers above her Mistress's rooms. Her Mistress, Sabine, encouraged her to sing to the night telling her how pleasing the sound of her voice was. Sabine's did enjoy the sound of Aleeria's voice, but she also encouraged her knowing how Aleeria's voice calmed the Lycans, keeping them from getting into mischief after dark. Sabine was nearly certain that Aleeria didn't know the effect her songs had on the Lycans. Nor did Aleeria know that the Lycans called her their Angel of the Night as none of them knew her identity and Sabine preferred it that way. The mystery gave Aleeria's voice and influence heightened power and that gave the purpose power. Sabine liked as many tricks up her sleeve as circumstances would allow.

Sabine was fond of Aleeria, who reminded her of her child from her days as a human. Sabine's own daughter died of a fever before she could be turned. It was a relief to Sabine to have someone close by who reminded her so strongly of her daughter, easing that loss as so little could. Sabine was fond enough that she considered turning Aleeria into a vampire herself, but Aleeria's mother had died when Sabine attempted to change her and so she would not try to do so with Aleeria. Some bloodlines were highly resistant to the vampire bite, just as others were to the bite of a Lycans. Aleeria's father, however, died as one of William's wild Lycans, so Sabine was certain Aleeria could survive being turned to a Lycans. Sabine was grateful Aleeria would continue to be close by. As her personal handmaiden, Sabine could give Aleeria privileges normally quite out of reach for a moral woman or a Lycans for that matter. It was almost like having a daughter to fuss over again. In addition to Sabine's fondness for Aleeria as a substitute daughter granting Aleeria immortality had the added benefit of ensuring that Aleeria could continue to soothe the savagery in their Lycans slaves for eternity.

Aleeria enjoyed watching the Lycans during the day, when Sabine and her mate slept and Aleeria had time to herself. Aleeria would draw or sew and watch them for hours, high in a stone tower. Sabine was equally certain that Aleeria did not know that she was watched every day when she watched the Lycans, not only by the guard she knew about at the entrance to the tower and by Sabine herself on occasion, but also by the object of Aleeria's fascination. Sabine had almost lost Aleeria when she was a child to a foolish accident and Sabine would not risk that again. It was only the swift and wholly unexpected action of one of the Lycans that had saved Aleeria from being killed.

Sabine knew Aleeria watched the Lycans who had saved her all those years ago, Sabas. He was loyal enough that Sabine did not interfere or discourage it. Sabine also noted the way Sabas tracked Aleeria when she watched the Lycans from her vantage point in the tower. Sabine assured Aleeria that the Lycans in the yard could not see her, but she also knew this to be untrue. Sabine knew that if Aleeria, who had a strong shy streak, knew she could be seen, she was likely to cease watching and Sabine did not want to put an end to one of the only privileges that Aleeria requested.

Sabine knew her servants worked best with a careful system of rewards and punishments and without both, the system broke down. If slaves received too many punishments and no rewards, they had nothing to work for other than to live and if life was too dismal no one would value it as motivation for long. Viktor might not understand that, but Sabine did and Marcus listened to Sabine. Beyond that, Marcus was more sympathetic to the Lycans's plight than either of the other Vampire Elders. Marcus had just begun his hundred year rule and in Sabine's mind it wasn't a moment too soon. The slaves would have revolted long ago if Aleeria's voice in the night didn't calm them so.

As far as Sabine could tell, Aleeria's voice in the night was the only reason any of them had not to fight or revolt or continue trying to survive. After all, with no women, no comforts and no real respite they had nothing to look forward to from one day to the next except the sound of Aleeria's voice in the night. It was a matter Sabine intended to discuss at length with Marcus, her father-in-law, soon. Many changes needed to be made, but how many occurred would depend largely on how well the Lycans selected for this new experimental privileged class preformed.

With thoughts of reinforcing the system of rewards for the Lycans and the necessity of turning Aleeria into a Lycans soon to preserve her youth and her life in mind, Sabine planned to let Aleeria be a prize for a worthy Lycans. Aleeria would be the first such female, but Sabine was certain that if those Lycans who proved themselves worthy were given additional privileges and a chance to have women and families, they would have more to lose and continue to work harder to please their masters. Besides, children were not only good collateral, but also slowed down anyone considering escape.

Aleeria was old enough now to take a life mate: a few years past twenty. She needed to be changed soon. It was time to see if Aleeria's self-appointed protector would prove himself deserving. Sabine resolved to begin testing him to that end soon, without his knowing of course. Sabas kept a close watch on Aleeria whenever she was in view of the yard, always watching in case she was in danger again. Sabine felt almost moved by it. It did not escape her notice, however, that Aleeria was becoming a lovely young woman and Sabas's interest might be simply an animal one of a male who has not had access to a woman for at least a century now. He was one of the first Lucian turned after all and no Lycans had the privilege of a willing woman, yet. Sabine planned change that among other things. Yes, Sabas could be an excellent test subject for this new class of Lycans in their ranks. If he failed, there was certainly no shortage of other possibilities.

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[Hear Me]

Aleeria's voice carried through the dark, pouring her heart's song into the night, full of longing and love and hope. She sang for someone to ease the aching in her heart, the loneliness. Her voice was powerful and passionate alternating between pure and sweet and low and sultry. Aleeria sang for one who saved her as a child, a Lycans whose, name she never knew, but she watched him toil in the yard every day since her near fatal accident. She burned for him, sometimes she even imagined that he looked up at her while she watched him and smiled at her. It was all in her mind surely, but what did that matter? Those musings were all the romance her world held. Maybe with his Lycans sight he could see her. She hoped that if he could see her, he didn't mind her watching him. She wished into the darkness that he would hear her and that he would know how she longed for him to know her, to be with her. Aleeria knew it was foolish. She didn't know him at all and he might well have forgotten all about her by now. Their encounter was such a brief moment to an immortal. Still, maybe it was enough a gauge of his character that he had saved a human child, a favorite of those who kept him in perpetual bondage, for no self-serving reason at all. Indeed, instead of being rewarded for his efforts, the slave master, Soren, had whipped his skin raw and bloody wrongly assuming that the Lycans had grabbed her for more nefarious purposes.

[The Kiss- Elektra Score]

Aleeria had been held in the steel grip of nearby vampire guards until Sabine came for her and Aleeria had been unable to convince them to stop punishing him until Sabine arrived and Aleeria told her what happened. Sabine, to her credit, believed Aleeria and stepped in, but by then her rescuer was a bloody mess and Aleeria never had a chance to thank him. She started her daily activity of watching the Lycans the next day from a distance deemed safe by Sabine. Aleeria wanted to make sure her rescuer was all right after what was done to him for saving her. She was amazed to see him the next day looking nearly healed. Aleeria was relieved to know he was doing so well, but even after her concerns were pacified she continued to come back day after day to watch him. She couldn't look away. He had saved her life and she would always be grateful for that. She wanted so desperately to thank him.

Beyond that, what she saw happen to him, the assumptions made of him because he was a Lycans and not a vampire, made her feel pity for him. More than anything she wanted to keep him from being treated in such a manner again, but she also knew that was well beyond her power even if she were a vampire and not a mere human servant. It was utterly preposterous, but she wanted to take care of him even knowing that he was infinitely stronger than she was. He was immortal with faster speed and healing and she still wanted to look after him as he had, in a way, looked after her.

Aleeria began to see the Lycans as a whole in a new light. She knew her Mistress did not see them as dumb beasts as Viktor did either and that only made Aleeria more adamant in her own beliefs. Aleeria trusted her Mistress's judgment as she had always observed Sabine to be fair even if she was strict. Aleeria trusted that whatever her Mistress asked her to do was the right thing and her demands on Aleeria were only to protect her. Aleeria also knew she was lucky to have a Mistress she could think of that way.

Most vampires in the castle didn't have human servants for any length of time. Eventually they gave in to the temptation and drained them, casting the remains to the Lycans for dinner. Sabine was very careful to make sure no vampire was alone with Aleeria except those she explicitly trusted just as she made sure that Aleeria was alone, yet protected during her time watching the Lycans from the tower.

After an hour or so of pouring her heartsong out into the night, Aleeria felt herself become sleepy and she sang a soft lullaby, soothing her raw heart before retiring to sleep. As she turned to go back to her room, she whispered into the night, "Sleep well my Lycans." He couldn't hear her of course, but it hardly mattered. She pretended he could and that was enough for her heart.

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Deep in the cells of the Lycans, a soft sigh rose up as her voice drifted away. There would be no more fighting for the night. None among them wanted to remember anything else before sleep but the powerful beauty of her voice. Loneliness is acute in a dark hole surrounded by bars instead of comfort.

[Beautiful Disaster- live/Love Actually: Glasglow Love Theme (arr. C. Armstrong)]

Sabas heard the voice as all the others did, though none of them knew to whom the voice belonged. It permeated his very being, easing the pains inflicted by another long day toiling under his vampire masters. His body had been beaten and broken more times than he could count, but those wounds healed well enough. The deeper aches though, that went beyond the flesh, were with him always. But when the Angel of the Night sang, he felt some part of her voice heal the deeper hurts left by over a century of slavery. Sabas leaned back against the cold stone wall and closed his eyes, letting her song take him far away. He dreamed that she sang for him and him alone and that somehow he'd rescue her and together they'd leave this awful place. They'd have a cottage in the woods and it would be always warm there. There would be a soft bed and a blazing fire and good food. He dreamed of sleeping there in the cottage in the woods, lost in her arms, his Angel of the Night.

Sabas pretended that the voice belonged to the girl he rescued all those years ago that he saw watching him and his fellow Lycans in the yard day after day. Sabas wondered what she saw or why she watched. She certainly didn't seem to delight in what she saw with the same sadistic pleasure as the vampires. She smiled a constant sad smile and her hands were always moving so fast, though with what he could never see. She glanced down occasionally to look at their work, but it was almost as if she could barely stand to tear her eyes away. As if her time watching them was too precious to waste. Such an unlikely thought, but it was comforting nonetheless as her presence was often the only highlight of his day as the mysterious voice in the darkness was his only comfort by night.

Sabas still didn't know her name. As a Lycans slave, he had no way to learn such things. He knew only that she was still human as she, unlike the majority of the castle, still aged. She had grown beautiful over the years, though not by vampire standards. She was too short for that and her frame was not lean and willowy. She looked capable, strong, yet feminine and curvy. Her dark hair fell around her shoulders. He still recalled the color of her blue-green eyes so like his own when he saved her. He was surprised she was still alive, knowing the fate of most human slaves. He assumed her beauty must be something the vampires wished to preserve and that one day, she would no longer be watching him because the sun's glow would burn her skin. He feared that day when she became one of his captors. Every day he saw her, bathed in sunlight and watching him was a good day, but how many more such days would there be? He knew that this, unlike a few tons of rock wasn't something he would be able to save her from.

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Sabine sent guards to fetch Sabas shortly before dawn. Like all the Lycans who toiled in the yard, he was utterly filthy and desperately in need of a through bath before he was placed in an enclosed space to serve her. Her highly sensitive sense of smell could not abide him as he was. She would have Aleeria clean him up and make his scent tolerable. It would be a good experience for Aleeria as Sabine intended to have her choose her mate soon and it would be good for Aleeria to get some experience handling a male before that happened. Besides, Sabine wanted the two of them to get a chance to interact and let Aleeria determine if she had any interest in Sabas when she wasn't watching him from a distance. Sabine was determined that Aleeria have some choice in her mate and Sabine herself had many years ago.

The next morning, Aleeria woke, and began to make preparations for her Mistress to go to sleep. As she worked, Aleeria thought on her dream from the previous night. She dreamt again of her Lycans who saved her. He had such wondrous eyes. She remembered exactly the way they had held her when he saved her. They'd been so full on concern, so penetrating in their blue gray color that they seemed to see into her very blood and being. Aleeria had thought him quite handsome then. She remembered the way his strong arms had wrapped all the way around her and carried her to safety. Those eyes continued to gaze at her in her dreams and she remembered the way they felt long after the rest of the dreams faded.

Lately, however, their gaze was not so concerned as they were appreciative. As she had grown she saw her rescuer not just as one deserving of her gratitude, but she began to appreciate his form and movements as well. He had become only more attractive to Aleeria as she had become a woman, but as she now appreciated her Lycans with more than her mind and heart. Her body longed for him, his mere appearance causing her hormones to stir and dance under her skin. Her Lycans was a magnificent specimen of male. With so many Lycans in the yard, she had many to compare him to, but none seemed to hold her fascinated gaze as well as he did.

As Aleeria finished turning down the thick quilts of the bed, Sabine entered the room silently as ever. "Aleeria, one of the Lycans will be acting as a new the guard for our quarters. I need you to clean him up. Depending on how filthy he is, you may not have time to watch the Lycans in the yard today, but you will have much time to observe this one up close." Sabine's order flowed over her.

Aleeria rose, bowing. "Whatever you ask of me is my will, Mistress." Aleeria replied obediently, concealing her curiosity and excitement even though Sabine could no doubt hear the pace of Aleeria's hear quicken. She glanced around the room, trying not to seem too eager. Could it be _her_ Lycans? "Where is this Lycans?" She asked.

"He is far too dirty to be allowed near our rooms as he is now," Sabine explained. "They do not bathe them much when they are in service in the yard, so I dare say it's been some time since he's had one. It's also been even longer since he's been around a female, so he is bound in chains in one of the interrogation rooms until you've made him presentable to make sure he doesn't try to take advantage of you. I've given orders for clothes and our house colors to be left in the room once you've finished and you can see that he is dressed appropriately. Come with me, I'll take you there."

Aleeria nodded and followed her Mistress through the halls of the keep wondering which of the Lycans would be the new addition to their house. She was still mortal for now, but her Mistress had been hinting not so subtly of late that she would be turned soon before continuing to serve her. Aleeria wondered if this Lycans would be the one to change her if he pleased the Lady Sabine with his service. Aleeria thoughts wandered back to her Lycans's eyes.

The sound of her Mistress's voice broke through Aleeria's thoughts like lightening. She had been taught early and well, unless you wanted to be a meal, when your master or Mistress spoke it was the only sound you could hear. Sabine was speaking of the Lycans Aleeria would be tending. Aleeria listened closely for some sign that it was indeed her Lycans.

"He's strong and serves well," Sabine explained, "but I would surmise it will take some time to get him clean enough. I know you are unused to being around males, particularly unclothed males, but this will be a good educational experience for you before you take choose your life mate. He is chained quite securely I assure you. I want you to clean him until not a speck of dirt remains anywhere on him. I trust you to be sure this is done to my satisfaction."

"Of course Mistress, it will all be done exactly as you wish." Aleeria assured her softly. She was careful to always keep her tones low and soft so as not to hurt her Mistress's ears. Vampire hearing was so much more sensitive than a human's was.

"Aleeria, while I wish you to become more comfortable around males, be careful not to let this Lycans beguile you. Do not forget you are still mortal and fragile and destined to be a prize for a worthy Lycans. You must preserve yourself to that end. If you do this for me, I will allow you to choose from the Lycans we have deemed worthy." Sabine paused, waiting for her words to sink in.

Aleeria glanced up sharply at her Mistress's face. To be given such a choice as a woman was a boon indeed. "Thank you Mistress. I will do as you ask. I will be worthy of this gift."

Sabine smiled at her and touched her face. "You serve me well Aleeria. Men might not understand what it is to condemn a woman to be a brood mare to someone she has no interest in, but I still remember what my lot would have been as a human. I was fortunate to choose my husband. For your loyalty, I will grant you the same gift." Sabine turned to the door. "Who knows, perhaps this Lycans may even prove himself worthy to be one of your options."

Aleeria followed her in Sabine into the interrogation room through a thick, sturdy wood and iron door Aleria followed her in and saw what she assumed was the Lycans covered head to toe in mud. "Mistress, are they always _this_ dirty up close?" She asked incredulously.

Sabine held back a laugh with great effort. "No, they are not. Lycans, why are you in such a state of filth?"

"Forgive me My Lady; I was thrown into the mud when I got caught too close to a fight amongst two of the other workers." His voice was not rough as Aleeria expected, but low and with a defeated caustic tone that Aleeria found oddly stirring.

"I see. Very well then, Aleeria. You may need a full day to make him sufficiently clean enough to serve, so do not concern yourself with your usually duties until that is taken care of. Lycans, this is Aleeria. She is my personal hand maiden. If harm should come to her for any reason, it will be your life. She will clean you and make you presentable as one of our house guards. You will comply with her in every way. When she is done with you, she will bring you up to our house for inspection. Aleeria, I have left what should be sufficient supplies to clean him here. There is hot water in a tub by the fire and plenty of it and there's a drain in the floor. It generally used to let blood out, but it will serve your purposes." Sabine mentioned this last mainly for the Lycans's benefit, to remind him of his place and the consequences for forgetting.

"Thank you Mistress. I'll be sure to clean him most thoroughly." Aleeria promised once more.

"See that you do." Mistress Sabine left the room, leaving Aleeria alone with Sabas.

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Please Read & Review


	2. Come Clean

You know for a story I meant to be a tale of lust and naughtiness, it's turning out to have more of a love story than I intended. Ah well. I hope you all enjoy this nearly as much as I did writing it. Happy Monday. The words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested.

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**Chapter 2: Come Clean**

[I listened to Caught in a Moment & Too Lost in You by Sugababes and Beautiful Disaster (live)]

Aleeria glanced around the room. The Lycan was covered head to toe in inches of mud, his ankles in chains that were secured to the wall two feet behind him and his wrists shackled to chains suspended from the ceiling. Neither set of chains had much slack in them and Aleeria imagined that after awhile he would get quite exhausted being forced to stand like that. There was a long table behind her covered with cleaning supplies and a large copper tub warming water by the fire on the opposite side of the room.

Sabas's senses were in high gear. He caught her scent when she started down the hallway. It was the girl he'd rescued all those years ago. What was she doing coming to see him? He overheard bits of her conversation with the vampire he could also scent. Aleeria. Her name was Aleeria. It was fittingly beautiful. Aleeria would be "cleaning him up" eh? Well, perhaps this wouldn't be such a miserable, demeaning day after all. Once they were alone, her scent wove around him like perfumed smoke; intoxicating, arousing.

Aleeria moved closer to the Lycan, inspecting him speculatively. "My goodness, I can barely see your face, you're so filthy. I hardly know where to start. I refuse to call you Lycan, like as if you have no personal distinction. Even pets have names and if you're going to be serving in my Mistress's house, then your status has been upgraded to mine: a pet. What's your name?"

"Sabas." He watched her closely, curious. She was clearly nervous, but strangely not afraid. "And I'm not a pet."

His low, smooth voice continued to stir something within her. She wasn't sure why, but she suddenly wanted nothing more than to hear him continue to speak to her for hours and let the sound of his voice continue to wash over her. Still, she smiled at him and replied, "You're as much a pet as I am now and you should be grateful for it. Better a pet than a slave."

"Depends on your point of view. A pet still has no rights, no real choices, and limited respect." He argued.

"I'd rather have something than nothing and frankly from what I hear, the living situation for the Lycans is going to start changing. You have an opportunity to represent your people and help earn them more freedoms. Don't squander it just because you're bitter about the way you've been treated up until now."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that because of the valiant efforts of one Lycan many years ago, my Mistress has felt more sympathetic towards the entire race. She believes as I do that your race, soon to be mine as well, has many redeemable qualities that make them worthy of improved treatment."

"I see. Well I suppose that would be a start," Sabas replied, his tone still caustic.

Aleeria eyed him more critically. If this Lycan was not to be trusted with the safety of her house, Sabine would certainly want to know Aleeria's observations. "Tell me Sabas, do you want to serve my Mistress?"

"It's a better life than the one I'm leaving." He allowed, his face twisting into a bitter smile.

Aleeria moved a little closer. "It is. I've served Sabine almost all my life. They are not all like Viktor." She assured him.

"I wouldn't say that too loudly if I were you," he cautioned, grinning.

Aleeria grinned right back. "I trust you won't rat me out."

"I certainly won't."

"Good. Let's see what do I have to clean you with? My goodness, you'd think I was cleaning a horse with some of this, though with the amount of mud on you I could do worse than a grooming brush."

"Do you bathe people often?"

"Never, but I imagine it's not much harder than cleaning a horse and horses I know. I suppose I'll start at the top and work my way down. You and I are about to become much better acquainted, I hope you're not shy."

"Are you?"

"I guess we'll find out." She dipped a cloth into warm water and began to gently rub the mud off of his face. She uncovered his cheeks and nose. She almost giggled at the way his nose jutted out of the mud, but his eyes were so startling, an intense blue gray color that contrasted sharply with his dark hair and tanned skin. Her hand froze on his face. She brushed her hand over his face, softly, fascinated. Then she realized what she was doing and shook her head, taking the cloth to rinse out. "I'm sorry. I- you remind me of someone."

His eyes held her. "Who?" Was it possible she remembered him too? That it was him she watched every day from the tower?

"When I was a child here, I got lost and I wandered into the yard. Somehow, rocks came loose from the work being done on the inner wall and they almost fell on me, but one of the Lycans pulled me out of the way. He saved my life and, but the slave master, Soren, whipped him raw before he realized that the Lycan had saved my Mistress's favorite. I never got to thank him. You look so much like him."

Sabas didn't know what to say. He remembered well seeing that tiny wisp of a girl and hearing the rocks come loose. He still wasn't sure how he managed to get to her in time and pull her out of the way.

Aleeria resumed cleaning off his face and then rinsed the cloth again. When she looked back at him, the firelight caught his newly revealed face and she gasped, tipping the water. It was him, the one who saved her, the one she watched from her tower day after day. _Her_ Lycan. "_You_ saved me. I couldn't see it at first with all the mud. I'm so sorry. You didn't say anything." She accused.

"I didn't want you to think I was trying to beguile you and there was never a need to thank me."

"Then I'll say I'm sorry that they hurt you for saving me."

"Apparently the punishment for beguiling you is far greater."

"You could hear her speaking in the hall?"

"Vampires have a tendency to constantly underestimate Lycans. It's a bad habit we encourage. So you're going to be a prize for a particularly good Lycan?" He asked as she began to meticulously wash his hair. It felt so good having her fingers massage his scalp and get all the dirt and grime out.

"Yes I am. I hope when the time comes for me to choose that the one I choose wants to be chosen. I know some of the Lycans that I will be allowed to choose from and one of them. Lucian will of course be among them. You and he are two of the leading reasons that my Mistress is working to change the living conditions for the Lycans. Still, I could never choose Lucian; I think his heart is spoken for."

"What makes you say that?"

"He is the only Lycan who does not look at me as if he might devour me whole."

Sabas nearly choked with laughter. "You're very observant. His heart is spoken for. It would not be a kindness to choose him."

"I know, but I hope I have other good options. At least I know he would be a kind mate. I won't be allowed to go much longer before making a choice. They don't want me to get much older you see and my Mistress is afraid that I'll be taken advantage of and lose some of my value as a prize." She rinsed out his hair and began washing his neck, but was hampered by his leather vest and his heavy spiked collar.

"So the idea is that the winner gets a beautiful woman, wholly untouched, all to himself?"

"That's the plan. I'm not sure it's very kind in the end. I would think the most would prefer a wife who could tend to her mate's needs and I will have absolutely no experience there. Incidentally, I'm going to need to remove your vest now."

"Are you trying to seduce me?"

Aleeria blushed from head to toe. "No, I just can't wash you properly with your clothes on and I can't clean your clothes while you're wearing them and. I wasn't making a suggestion before, just venting a concern."

"I see. Well, as far as my vest goes, you can just undo the buckles on the side and lift it over my head."

"I should have done that first I suppose, but I'll just clean your head again if it needs it. I'm sorry if you get chilled. I can always get blankets to wrap your top half until I finish the bottom half." She gulped audibly and Sabas chuckled. He could understand at least why she smelled a little afraid. It had less to do with his being a Lycan, than his being male. He found her nervousness strangely charming.

"Don't worry, Lycans don't get cold easily."

"Well, that's a relief. It could take some time to get you and your clothes clean enough to put them back on." Aleeria began to undo the buckles along the sides of Sabas' vest, her fingers trembling lightly. "I'm sorry that I have to do this, that you can't just be left to wash yourself," She elaborated. "This must be very embarrassing for you."

Sabas sighed as her fingers brushed at his sides while removing his leather vest. It was a sensation somewhere between a tickle and a caress. Her concern over his self esteem moved him. "Actually, I'm finding this rather enjoyable. In my entire life since I was ten, which was over a hundred years ago, I've never had anyone do anything for me. And until I was ten, it was my mother."

"I see," Aleeria replied, switching to the opposite side. "So you see me as being like your mother then?"

"Hardly, my mother was never so gentle before a bath and I hardly would have accused her of trying to seduce me."

"Well I suppose I'm not too hopeless a prize then."

"You are hardly hopeless." Sabas replied as Aleeria moved in close, her face inches from his while she lifted his vest over his head.

When she pulled the vest free, she flashed him a shy grin before turning to take the vest to one end of the tables. Aleeria focused her attention on the vest, needing the distraction to regain her composure. Being in such close proximity to _her_ Lycan made her heart race. Aleeria dipped one of the horse grooming brushes into water and brushed down the vest thoroughly. When it was cleaned to her satisfaction, she rubbed the leather with saddle soap to soften it and then set it out to finish drying. She could feel him watching her the whole time, but she ignored it and let the work take her focus, slow her heart.

Then she turned to look back at Sabas now sans vest and her breath caught and her heart was racing again. Sabas tried not to let his face break into a cocky grin of male satisfaction. He knew it was an utterly unfair advantage he had being able to hear the beating of her heart or the way it sped up when she looked at him, but if she could hear his heart, she would know it quickened whenever she was near and even more so every time he heard her heart go faster because of him.

Aleeria studied Sabas. He was every bit as well-muscled and handsome without his vest as she had imagined and her duties included getting to clean every inch of it. If this was a hard day's work, she'd take it every day for the rest of her life.

Aleeria blushed, knowing she was staring and picked up a clean cloth and wash basin, refilling it with warm water from the basin by the fire. She moved closer, tempted to break the awkward eye contact, but refusing to give in to her nerves. She smiled at him. "Well, I suppose I am a bit shy. How are you doing?"

"Just fine. I never have been very shy, certainly not with a beautiful woman."

Aleeria's heart picked up and she smiled at him. "You've just been without a woman for too long." She argued, wiping away the bits of mud that had scraped against his previously cleaned skin when she removed his vest. "I assure you; around her I'm quite ordinary."

"Don't do that. Don't compare yourself to them like being human and not undead makes you less beautiful," Sabas argued.

"It's hardly just my mortality that prompts me to say that," she murmured. Aleeria put down the cloth and soaped his hair, cleaning it more thoroughly and running a comb through it. He really had wonderful long dark hair. It was thick and lush and she wanted to run her fingers through it forever and Sabas wanted to let her. When his hair was clean and free of tangles, Alleeria ran her fingers through it so it wouldn't lie so flat against his scalp, making him look like a drowned rat. Sabas moaned as her fingers massaged his scalp, she moved her fingers through his hair again and again enjoying the feel of it.

"So, will you be bathing me every day from here on?" he asked, hopefully.

"Perhaps if I do a good job of making you presentable Sabine will insist on it. I imagine her opinion of a Lycan's abilities to groom himself is not particularly high given that there is so little call for it."

"Well, then you better be sure not to miss anything." Sabas involuntarily readjusted his stance.

The motion was meant to relieve some of the tension in his legs from standing, but Aleeria's eyes were drawn down when he moved and she couldn't help but think about the bits she was most intrigued by. Still, one thing at a time, she reminded herself.

"I'd better be sure to get your hands then." Aleeria moved a nearby bench closer to Sabas and stood on it to unbuckle and remove his arm bracers and put them on the table to clean later. Then with a small brush in hand, she climbed back up and began to scrub at his hands and finger nails. She took her time cleaning his hands first, tracing the lines of his palms, feeling the strength there. Being a bit mischievous by nature and wanted to test him a little, she leaned nearly up against his hands when she cleaned his arms. Aleeria wanted to see if he'd try to touch her. She wanted him to, but she couldn't allow it unless it was part of her duty to clean him.

Sabas saw a small smile quirk on her lips and had a feeling he knew what she was up to. The warm, tempting swell of her breasts was nearly touching his hands while Aleeria ran the cloth over his arms. Her hands ran over his skin, caressing it, checking her progress at cleaning him. It was sweet torture feeling her run her hands up and down the length of his arms, tracing the muscles, subtly pressing and testing them, exploring every inch of them. Sabas flexed his fingers as if stretching them, as if unaware how perilously close she was to them. His fingers brushed gently over her left breast, getting a feel for the curve, the softness, his fingertips straying to lightly circle the nipple in a motion that could almost have been an accident. Then he straightened them out again as if it had all been incidental.

Aleeria grabbed the upper part of the chain his arm was suspended to in order to steady herself. Electric currents of pleasure blossomed from her chest and swirled down to the edges of her limbs before pooling in her groin. She locked her eyes with his. She'd wanted this, but she'd never imagined it could be so intense. Was it always like this, or was it only so intense because it was _her_ Lycan touching her at last?

Sabas quirked an eye brow at her. "Sorry, my fingers needed a stretch."

Aleeria raised her own eye brows. "Ah, well. Your hands must be getting quite stiff."

"They're not all that's getting stiff."

"Oh?"

He waited, letting her mind wonder a moment until she took his meaning, her eyes resting on his groin. "My legs are getting a bit stiff too," he finished.

"I see," Aleeria grinned blushing again. "Well if you need to stretch out your limbs again, please do, I don't mind."

"Thank you. You're very kind." Sabas grinned, his eyes full of mischievous intent.

"Not at all. The least I can do for the Lycan who saved my life is make sure that you're comfortable as you can be." She flashed him another cheeky smile before climbing down. She worked on finishing his arm by rubbing down his shoulder.

"Do you flirt this way with all the men you bathe?" He asked when she was occupied with rubbing his shoulder clean with enough force to massage the muscles that were feeling the strain.

Aleeria giggled a little. "To be quite honest you're the first. I'm not sure what's bewitched my tongue or my manner. I'm not normally so bold."

Sabas looked at her more closely. "The first one you've flirted with or the first one that you've bathed?"

Aleeria focused her eyes on his muscles, not wanting to lose her tongue by getting lost in his blue gray eyes again. "Both actually. Besides clearly being necessary, I believe she my Mistress, Sabine, felt this cleaning you up would be an educational experience for me before she has me choose a mate and sire."

"Educational?"

"I've never spent this much time alone with a male before, much less one in any state of undress." Aleeria explained.

"Really?" His tone becoming more incredulous.

"Yes. I've never even kissed one before," She replied shyly

"At your age? You must be near twenty now."

"Twenty-four actually. Well after my near fatal accident in the yard, Sabine has kept an exceptionally close watch on me. Add to that, she won't let any males around me alone."

"Unless they're chained up apparently," he replied, amused. He couldn't say this news upset him, it was just unexpected.

"Well, you're my first prisoner."

"Well, I am honored to be your first prisoner. I'd be honored to be your first anything else too incidentally." He flashed her another bold grin.

She flashed him a brief laughing smile, before her eyes dropped to the floor. "It's actually a little embarrassing really. Like I said, I'm not sure that this was the best laid plan of hers. My poor future husband who hasn't had a woman in who knows how many years will get me with no idea how to satisfy him." Aleeria caught herself, suddenly aware of what she'd just said aloud and a bit embarrassed by it. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be talking about this. It's not proper or appropriate."

Sabas forgot for just a moment that he was chained and tried to move to silence her with his lips, but instead he just rattled the chains, his lips just a bare inch from hers, unable to move further. Frustrated, he growled and moved back, the chains going slightly slack again. "Sorry. I shouldn't have tried to do that. Your Mistress would have me for a fur rug. But you don't have to worry about being appropriate with me."

"Why? You're no less worthy of respect than I or my Mistress," Aleeria argued fiercely.

Sabas chuckled. "I mean I don't mind you talking to me about this, but I appreciate your respect though I hardly feel I've earned it."

"Everyone deserves at least a basic level of respect just for existing." Aleeria replied. "And you have mine for saving my life. I can't think of a better reason to respect someone. Anyway, thanks. I don't have a lot of people to talk to. No one really. I'm kept very isolated for my safety. My Mistress is very fond of me and she is just very concerned that something might happen to me. Honestly, now that I think about it, I think she might have brought you in to our house guard to protect me since she already knows you did it before with no ulterior motive."

"If that's what she wants me to do, at least you'll have someone to talk to." Sabas offered.

Aleeria smiled. "That's true. Now, where was I? Ah yes, I do believe your arm is sufficiently clean." She ran her hand down its length touching what of it she could reach and brushing herself against his bare chest in the process, eliciting another soft groan from Sabas. She glanced at his face. His pupils were darker than they'd been, more predatory suddenly. "I imagine that being touched by a woman and discussing matters of sex and kissing after such a long period of forced abstinence is rather cruel. I'm sorry. I don't mean to torture you." Aleeria apologized, chastened.

"But I am your prisoner, remember," Sabas argued, smiling at her, eager for this game to continue. "Your first. Torture is an essential part of having a prisoner. So by all means, make me suffer. I'd rather suffer under your lovely hands then suffer alone."

Aleeria held his eyes a moment and then took her hair out of its top knot, letting it fall around her shoulders. "If you're sure."

"Certain." He replied, his voice rough with want.

Aleeria nodded. "Your left arm's clean. Time to do the right one." She moved the bench so she could reach Saba's left arm. He was watching her carefully, noting the plotting, mischievous look back in her eyes. Aleeria let her hair stay down, and she let it fall as a curtain between his hand, her body, and the door and went on to cleaning his arm. This time, she kept her eyes locked on his and while she worked on his hand, she stroked it lightly, experimentally. She wanted to let him touch her again. Aleeria finished cleaning his hand and then, making sure her hair hid them, moved her face millimeters from his hand as she continued to clean his forearm. Again, testing him, wanting to see what he'd do, what he wanted to do.

Sabas could almost see the cogs turning in her head. The anticipatory looks she gave him, like she was befriending a wild animal that had been caged for far too long; not so long as to drive out the wild, but long enough to have forgotten how to socialize, to have forgotten the soft touch of affection or comfort. He was her wild animal and Aleeria wanted to believe he wasn't dangerous, but she wanted to be careful too. Sabas wanted to deserve her faith in him. He'd been a decent sort once, hadn't he? When Aleeria moved her face so close to his hand, he reached out to touch her without thought. He cupped her cheek, rubbing his rough thumb over her soft cheek. His eyes sought out hers again, silently asking permission. He could have sworn he saw her nod before he ran his thumb over her lips.

Aleeria closed her eyes, savoring the gentle contact, kissing his finger tips as he brought them one by one over her lips. Then suddenly emboldened, she shifted her position, running her body past his hand until it rested over her breast once more, her hands continuing to clean his arm as if nothing unusual was happening. She scrubbed at his skin with a slight tugging motion that seemed to draw him closer to her.

Sabas felt his heart leap as he suddenly found himself with her breast pressed fully against his hand only separated from his touch by a few thin layers of soft linen. He looked at her again for just a moment making sure Aleeria had intended to put herself in his hand. She quirked a half smile at him. Sabas could feel her heart beat under his hand, racing faster. His fingers cupped around her breast, enjoying feeling the weight of it in his hand, his thumb, tracing the edge and circling around her nipple. Sabas could feel it harden further under his touch and then he smelled something sweet and musky and steadily growing stronger, teasing his nose. It was _her_. Sweet gods, he could smell her. He could smell how much she wanted him, how much his touch was arousing her. Never in his life had he been so grateful for his transformation into a Lycan as he was at that moment and they were just getting started.

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***Don't worry much more to come. I have many plans for Sabas. Please Review. It will encourage me to update faster.***


	3. Caught in a Moment

I'm so glad I ran with this idea. Thanks for all the reviews. They're keeping me going. I'll try to have an update at least once a week as long as the reviews keep inspiring me. Sorry this one took so long, I have house guests.

Story universe reminder: in the movie, Underworld, the Lycans refer to the vampires as Bloods by way of name calling. Raze yells it in the subway. Also the words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested.

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**Chapter 3: ****Caught in a Moment**

[Caught in a Moment (Sugababes), Too Lost in you (Sugababes), How (Lisa Loeb), Moments like this (Allison Krause), Radar (Britney), Blood and Chocolate Score]

Aleeria's hands moved automatically at cleaning Sabas's arm, her attention long since occupied by his ministrations. He began ever so slowly, gently to stroke his fingers over her breast. He wished absently that her dress was not between them, but this would do for now. Clearly, Aleeria had never been touched in this way before. He didn't know what benevolent deity had granted him this boon that she would _want_ him to touch her, but he'd be damned if he'd waste it or disappoint her. While his thumb continued to circle her nipple, brushing over the tip occasionally and drawing a strangled cry from her throat, his other fingers stroked along the outer edge of her breast in a long arc, cradling her.

It was all Aleeria could do to stand upright. The waves of pleasure pouring through her made her entire body shudder and quake, her hands, starting to grip Sabas's arm to steady herself, her work forgotten. She could feel the pleasure building towards something steadily. Every time his thumb brushed over the tip of her breast, a fresh peak of pleasure would surge through her and her eyes would fly open to stare into his. Sabas watched her with a sense of pleasurable wonderment. The look he gave her was almost as arousing as what he was doing to her body with his hand. He looked so enchanted by her and so hungry for her. Aleeria began to wonder how much more Sabas could do to her if he wasn't in those pesky chains. Finally, her legs were shaking so badly she hissed out a shaky request for him to stop.

The response was surprisingly immediate. Sabas pulled his hand away just enough to break contact with her skin, but not so much as to compromise Aleeira's death grip on his arm. Aleeria sighed, slowly pulling herself together and shakily stepped off the bench. She sat dropped down to sit on the bench, her breath coming in ragged gasps. She looked longingly up at Sabas's right hand, now hanging innocently in its manacle, far from her reach.

Aleeria sighed wistfully. "Sorry about that. I was about to lose my balance and some dim part of my brain pointed out that if I fell there is no one in this room capable of catching me. Add to that, it might be awkward explaining how I fell. My Mistress has an uncanny sense of deception of any sort."

"There's no need for you to apologize or explain," Sabas replied calmly. "I'm a good dog, I know that stop means stop."

Aleeria smiled at him, her eyes full of laughter. "I thought you said you weren't a pet."

"If this is what being your pet entails, I'm willing to reconsider," he teased silkily.

Aleeria's gaze slid upwards to his hand again, and Sabas noting the direction of her focus, began to move his hand as if she were still standing on the bench, her breast pressed into his hand. His thumb swept deftly over air, in small, tight circles.

Aleeria felt pleasurable aftershocks ripple through her, remembering the vivid sensation of his touch only moments before. It had felt so exquisite and only left her quivering for more. Electric warmth flickered between her thighs at the thought. "You're quite good at that," She remarked in an almost scholarly way. "Thank you."

Sabas chuckled. "You're an excellent instrument of torture yourself."

"You've only begun to suffer, my filthy prisoner." Aleeria teased back. "I'm sure there's a learning curve on torture and I intend to become quite proficient."

"Is that a threat or a promise?" Sabas grinned rakishly.

"It's whatever I decide it is." She replied her heart thudding nervously again.

"I do seem to still be quite dirty overall. You'll have plenty of opportunity to experiment." Sabas raised an eyebrow suggestively and Aleeria felt heat rush through her skin once more.

When Aleeria could feel her legs again, she stood up and glanced around for the wash basin and water. Where had she put them when she came down from the bench? Her mind was so awhirl with pleasure; she had no memory of putting it down. It was of course right next to where she had been sitting moments before and she chuckled to herself before refreshing the water.

Sabas looked at her quizzically. "What's so funny, fair captor?"

Aleeria felt something deep inside her shudder at the way his low voice said captor, making the word darker, more seductive. "I lost all sense of my surroundings for a little while there. I just find my sudden absent-mindedness amusing."

"I could make you forget a great deal more than the four walls of this room," He promised.

Aleeria, bit back a moan, her heart thudding hard against her ribs. "I believe you," she replied her voice soft and breathless once more. "I am glad this room is usually an interrogation room though. The walls and door and more solid than other rooms in case the prisoner was a Lycan and shape-shifted. It makes the room quite soundproof and unlike most of the public rooms, lacks spy holes."

"Curious choice for your Mistress," Sabas commented thoughtfully. "It's almost as if she wants me to get loose."

Aleeria laughed. "I imagine that the drain on the floor and the manacles secured into the stone itself had more to do with her choice. Additionally, this room is the closest interrogation room to our quarters."

"I see." His voice was neutral, but inside his body burned for her. Touching her had merely teased them both. How many decades had it been since he'd last touched a woman? Whatever the number it would be worth the drought just to have her at the end of it.

"I have no idea how much noise I might have made," Aleeria continued. "I'd hate to think of someone overhearing us."

Sabas considered telling her how much he enjoyed the sounds she made, which reminded him of a particularly happy cat and as a hot-blooded wolf, he intended to give chase. Still, he didn't want to make her self-conscious; that might make the sounds stop and that could not be allowed. So he merely replied, "I am sure that if this room is meant to insulate screams, we weren't overheard."

Aleeria nodded in agreement, still a bit dazed, before she picked up the cloth and basin and moved to stand before Sabas again. She began to clean what of his neck she could reach, trying to clean mud from both the collar he wore and the soft flesh beneath. The heaviness of the collar startled her, he seemed so gentle with her to need such a potentially lethal restraint, but then she considered what the guards at the gate looked like when they transformed and she understood. She was underestimating him; he was a Lycan still and therefore capable of great strength. Still, the silver spikes pointed towards his exposed throat made her pause. They were so sharp and heavily constructed. "Do you have to wear this collar always?"

"Since I was turned." He replied, his voice suddenly no longer seductive, but bitter and caustic again. "All Lycans must wear them at all times unless we are chained by the front gate."

"But you are the daylight protectors of the vampires. Surely you could do that so much more effectively without these collars. What if William's wild Lycans came for us?" Aleeria argued, alarmed.

Sabas shrugged as much as his chains would allow. "Viktor fears an attack from within if these collars were removed. He thinks it is enough of a risk to have four of us uncollared by the front gates."

Aleeria nodded and began to scrub at the front of his shoulders as well. "Do you ever worry that you'll lose control and these silver spikes will get driven into you before you can use your strength to rip the collar clear?"

Sabas just looked at her a moment, taking in what she'd said. "What makes you think I could break this collar if I was in my Lycan form?"

Aleeria slanted him a look. "I've heard how strong Lycans are when you've changed. I remember seeing it when my father died."

Sabas looked at her sharply. "Was your father killed by Lycans?"

Aleeria glanced away, dipping the rag into the water to clean it. "No, he was killed by vampires before he could kill me and my mother. My two sisters and brother were not so lucky. William attacked our village. My father ran out to protect the village with my older brother and were turned. They came back to the house and killed my sisters before we knew what had happened. The Death Dealers were nearby and they managed to stop the wild Lycans before they killed my mother and I. The village was destroyed though and my mother and I were brought here to serve Sabine."

"I'm so sorry." Sabas replied quietly, his eyes locking with the floor. "I'm surprised you don't hate the lot of us."

Aleeria saw his shame, and took his face in her hand, encouraging him to look at her. "You are not like them. They are monsters, unable to be anything human or civil again. They aren't even animals. Animals at least hunt and kill for food or to keep from becoming food. William's Lycans kill anything that crosses their path without cause or need. That is why they are monsters and why you are nothing like them. A wild Lycan would never have risked himself to eat an insignificant human he didn't know, much less save one."

"Don't call yourself insignificant." His eyes flashed, angry that she would see herself the way the Bloods saw them all: as expendable.

Aleeria shrugged, smiling in an offhanded way while she continued to scrub at his shoulders. "I am though for now. My life is a flash of light in the halls of eternity as long as I am mortal. Your life will burn steadfast as a star."

She moved behind him to clean the back of his neck. Aleeria was nervous about seeing his back bared to her. She still expected to see it criss-crossed with blood or scars from the whipping she witnessed after he saved her. It was a memory that still haunted her dreams even now. Still, when she moved behind him, she could see that his back was nearly unmarked. Aleeria reached out to trace three crossing lines that stood out against his dirty skin. "I thought Lycans healed all their wounds completely. Is this from the time I saw them beat you?"

Sabas thought back. It had been a long time since anyone had seen his back and cared about those scars, "No. They're from before I was changed. I was a farmer a long time ago. I worked for one of the neighboring nobles. They gave me to the Bloods in tribute a little over a hundred years ago. When I was still human, I was given three lashes by my human master."

"Why?" Aleeria began to scrub his back while he spoke, efficiently removing the dirt and grime.

"I worked with another slave who is now a Lycan here as well, Xristos. He fell on the march here and I stopped to help him. He was exhausted, but my master, terrified of being caught by the wild Lycans in the woods after dark, wouldn't rest a moment for any of us. I helped Xristos up and I took his lashes for him."

Aleeria felt her heart give a warm twist. "You willingly suffer a great deal to protect others it seems." She paused, her hands finishing cleaning off his low back and impulsively leaned forward and ran her fingers tenderly over the scars again before repeating the path with her lips.

Sabas froze. He could feel the soft brush of her hair and mouth along his back as she tended his scars. He felt warmth radiating out of every place she touched. He let out a soft keening sound when Aleeria finished her path along the last scar, never wanting her to stop. Then Sabas heard her rinse out the basin of water and he felt her begin to clean off his back again, but this time he felt Aleeria moving more slowly, almost reverently, now that the dirt was gone.

Aleeria moved the cloth over his skin, tracing the powerful muscles. She so wanted to wrap herself around him, but kissing his scars was already a step beyond what she was supposed to be doing here. She didn't want to break her promise to Sabine, but Sabas was so very tempting. Aleeria eyed up his leather-clad ass a moment and sighed wistfully. She had an impulse to run her hands over it and give it a good squeeze or two, but she reined it in. If he earned the right to be chosen, she'd have time enough for that.

Besides, she'd get to handle it soon enough, once the pants came off. Sabine did say she had to wash every inch of him thoroughly. Heat flooded through her at the thought. Her nervousness was giving way to a greedy hunger to see and touch more. Listening to Sabas sigh contentedly while she traced his scars had been highly pleasurable. Aleeria was surprised and fascinated by how much pleasure she found in Sabas' enjoyment of both her pleasure and her touch. It made her very eager to see what other sounds she could coax out of him.

Sabas could hear her heart speeding up again, but she was standing still as far as he could tell. He wasn't sure what was setting her off, but he could smell her again too. "See something you like back there?"

Aleeria giggled, a little startled. She had the sudden feeling of getting caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "Perhaps. Or perhaps I am just determining the best way to finish cleaning you up."

"I see." He experimentally flexed his back and grinned in satisfaction when he heard Aleeria's breath catch and her heart race a little faster. Still, he opted for a change in topic to keep her from becoming embarrassed. "So, what did you mean before about choosing a sire?"

Aleeria took a deep breath, calming herself and reorganizing her thoughts. "The Lycan I choose as my lifemate will also change me into a Lycan."

Sabas felt his blood begin to rush past his ears as something primal and possessive howled in anticipation within him. He tried to focus past it. "What does your mother think about you becoming a Lycan?"

Aleeria's heart slowed. Her voice sounded distant. "I don't know. She died a long time ago."

Sabas felt his heart twist at the words, fearing the answer. "What happened to your mother?"

"She died here." Aleeria replied evasively.

"How?" Sabas pressed, wishing he could see her, touch her, comfort her, even for a moment.

Aleeria's voice became rough. "Sabine tried to change her and it didn't take. That's actually why I was in the yard that day. I _was_ lost, that's true, but I was lost inside myself. That's how I got lost outside in the castle yard. It was awful enough watching the rest of my family die, my father and brother cut down by Viktor's daughter, the Death Dealer Sonja, but watching my mother die broke something inside me for awhile. I was just running through the hallways. I don't know how I found my way outside. I remember the still look in my mother's eyes and then I remember seeing the rocks about to fall and then seeing you. I can't recall the rest even now."

"Why wouldn't Sabine change you into one of her kind if she is so fond of you?" Sabas asked, curiously.

"Not interested in adding me to your ranks?" Aleeria half teased.

Sabas grinned. "That's a loaded question. Let's just say, I wouldn't wish this collar or the life that comes with it on anyone. The life of a vampire, however, is one of power and privilege. On the other hand, while I certainly do enjoy being your prisoner, it would have a different connotation if you were a Blood. I'd hate for you to be part of the reason I wear this collar."

Aleeria let out a breath she hadn't know she was holding, relieved that his reasons were out of concern for her. "Well, either way, that avenue isn't available to me. My mother too, served her well and so Sabine wished to reward her. When Sabine tried to turn my mother, the bite that was made to turn her into a vampire killed her, devouring her from the inside out. Sabine said that not everyone can make the change. As her daughter, Sabine was concerned that I would die the same way."

Aleeria circled around to face him again, her eyes avoiding his for now. She focused on the heavy collar around his neck. She carefully traced the outer rim of it. "So you won't just lose control and impale yourself?"

Sabas noted her change in manner. He didn't ask any further questions, letting Aleeria redirect their conversation. She'd gone to so much effort to make him feel as comfortable as possible, showing him every possible sign of concern. It was only right he return the favor. "Changing is something that only happens during the full moon for most of us. Eventually we'll be able to change at will, but as Lucian tells it, it can only happen with a deliberate choice. It's not like we can just lose control and fursplode."

Aleeria laughed sharply, his turn of phrase catching her by surprise. "Fursplode," she repeated meeting is eyes again.

Sabas felt something in him inexplicably soothed as she met his eyes again, his comment breaking her out of her painful remembrances as he had intended. "As in, suddenly and uncontrollably shift from human to Lycan in an explosion of fur and teeth." Sabas clarified, grinning.

Aleeria chuckled. "Well, I'm much relieved to hear that you don't have to worry about that." She reached forward to touch his throat under the spikes. "I guess you don't sleep on your stomach either."

"If you choose me, I'll sleep by your side." His voice was silky again, teasing, enticing.

Aleeria blushed and gently began to clean and rub the skin under the collar some more. Sabas made a low moan in his throat and Aleeria felt her insides liquefy.

"I can't even tell you how good that feels," Sabas groaned, his eyes closed.

She grinned and boldly leaning up to whisper in his ear. "Good to know. If I choose you, I'll wash your neck every day if you like."

Sabas groaned in satisfaction at the thought. "That would be wonderful."

Aleeria began to wash his shoulders next, tracing the planes and lines of muscle on his chest, letting the hardness of his body distract her mind from the worst of her memories. She looked him over slowly, trying to keep her facial expressions speculative instead of hungry. Her ravenous eyes, took in the well-developed pectorals, the long lines on the sides of his abdomen that disappeared into his leather pants. She began to wonder if his chest was as sensitive as hers was. She decided to start with his sides and then come back to the front and linger there.

Sabas watched Aleeria look him over. He saw her face so carefully made up into an expression of almost professional scrutiny as if he were a floor she were deciding how best to clean. But her heart betrayed her, racing more and more wildly as her eyes traveled over him, and her scent, her scent was most traitorous of all. Sabas could smell how excited her body became the longer she observed. He nearly chuckled at the contrast and gave the game away, but he didn't want her to know the many ways he could read her. If Aleeria's ineffectual attempt to hide her true reaction to him was any indication, if she knew he could hear the way her heart quickened near him, she'd try to find a way to control it. That particular reaction was something he wanted to avoid. Aleeria's unconscious reaction to him was a deep, visceral thrill all on its own and he wouldn't dampen it for anything.

Aleeria began scrubbing at his sides where the mud was caked on in strange patterns because of the buckles on his vest. "Tell me if I'm going too hard."

Sabas chuckled. "I don't think you can, but I'll let you know. It would tickle if it didn't feel so damn good."

"Well then I guess I'll have to make sure it doesn't start to feel like a tickle." Aleeria teased back. She was enjoying talking to him more than she imagined. He still made her feel nervous sometimes when he looked at her, but she wasn't afraid of him and she had been so concerned before today that she would be. How ashamed she would have been if she finally found herself in the presence of the Lycan she had mooned after for so long, _her_ Lycan, and she was afraid of him because of what he was.

When his sides were clean, she moved back to his front, cleaning his chest in broad strokes. Sabas tried to hold back the moans her cleaning strokes drew from him, but he couldn't help it. It felt too good, especially after all this time. Aleeria surprised him though. After she scrubbed the worst of the mud off the whole of his chest, she began to explore the lines of his chest with her hand.

Experimentally, she ran a finger along the line between his pectorals, moving first to his right. Sabas sighed heavily making low involuntary moans and arched his chest into her hand. Aleeria alternated her gaze between his eyes and the point of contact between her finger and his skin. So close to him now, she could see his pupils dilate. She could feel Sabas's breath become more ragged under her hands. Then she repeated the gesture, but moving to his left and laying her hand lightly over his heart, cupping his chest in a similar fashion to the way he had held her not long before, her thumb resting just over his hardened nipple. She could feel his heart start to race under her palm and grinned in feline satisfaction. "Well, it's good to know I'm not the only one with a racing heartbeat."

"Not for some time now." Sabas assured her, his voice rough.

Aleeria withdrew her hand shyly. "I'm sorry. I should've asked. I was curious."

"Curiosity never killed anything but a little time," Sabas argued, his voice taking on an almost desperate edge. "By all means, satisfy your curiosity all you like."

Aleeria didn't answer, she simply refreshed her wash cloth and began to slowly and methodically clean every inch of his chest: the spaces between each rib, the ridges between each of his abdominals, and so on. She swirled her cloth in his navel, eliciting another groan as Sabas could feel his groin tighten in response. Then she worked her way back up to his pectorals, her eyes alternating once more between her task and his eyes almost as if she were asking permission. Sabas nodded whenever he caught her, but it was less and less frequent as she progressed and his awareness of anything but her touch waned.

Aleeria began to rub the outer edges of his pectoral, avoiding his nipples, circling, teasing then moving down to trace his ribs, his abdominals, the oh so tempting lines leading down into his leather pants, and then back up again until Sabas thought he might lose his mind. He arched his chest closer to her hand, straining the reach of his chains and trying to get her to touch him, to cease her teasing, swirling evasions.

Aleeria smiled at him, gently teasing and paused leaning towards his ear. Sabas groaned in frustration. "Is there something I can help you with? A spot or two I've forgotten to clean perhaps?" She whispered.

"Yes," he hissed. "Please." Sabas arched himself again towards her fingertips, the chains clinking lightly in protest. He couldn't articulate his need further. He couldn't recall ever being so hungry for the touch of another and she hadn't even gotten his pants off, much less any of her own clothes. And she was unlikely to remove any of her own clothes any time soon, he reminded himself. Aleeria wasn't meant for anyone in that way; yet. But by all the gods, he'd make sure she was his one day, no matter the cost.

Aleeria chuckled throatily in his ears, earning an indistinct keening sound and whispered. "Why, you're most correct; how careless of me." She started on his left moving in small circles around the tip, feeling it harden further under her fingertips to her utter fascination. Sabas sighed in relief for a moment before he felt the delicious sensation of torture start to climb again. This would never be enough. Aleeria switch to his right side and his body jerked slightly. "Ah, so you're more sensitive on this side. I'll have to remember that." She purred.

Sabas loved the way she said that, as if she too, had plans for him to be under her hands in the future. Her fingers swirling around his nipples felt so good. His eyes slid closed in pleasure and he began to picture them in a quiet room in the castle, quite alone. His chains were no longer restraining him and she was no longer a fragile human, but his mate. He wouldn't need to worry about hurting her and he could show her exactly how much she stirred him. She belonged to him and him alone in this musing. Sabas could see her leaping into his arms, wrapping herself around him and driving herself onto him again and again, as he pressed her into the stone wall. He let loose a low growl saturated with wanting it to be so.

Aleeria was utterly captivated by his reaction to her. She wanted to touch him for hours. She wanted to make him feel as shaken and stirred as he had made her feel before. It was oh so hard to resist exploring him with more than just her fingertips. Aleeria certainly had her answer: he was definitely as sensitive as she was and it delighted her down to the very darkest corners of her being. She wanted to touch him with her lips again, but it seemed dangerous, like a step into the shadows. She didn't know where it might lead or if she'd be able to stop herself. It certainly would fall into the category of being contrary to Sabine's wishes and more than ever now Aleeria wanted to earn the right to choose. For now, this would have to do. Sabas let loose another moan of pleasure that Aleeria felt somehow ripped through them both and decided that this would do as an appetizer anyway.

Sabas couldn't recall such a simple touch ever exciting him in this way before. He was so far gone that he almost didn't hear the sound of footsteps, familiar footsteps coming down the hallway towards them. When he was certain, it was with great reluctance and difficulty that he mentioned it. "Aleeria," he hissed. "Much as I loathe to stop you, we are about to have company. I believe your Mistress is returning to check your progress."

A/N: More already in progress.


	4. Satisfying Hungers

A/N: Happy Saturday! Thank you for all the reviews. They totally perk up my day and get me anxious to write more. Sorry this took more than 2 weeks. I was working on multiple chapters amidst getting sick and trying to do some editing and continuity checking on this piece plus serious overtime at work. This chapter is an extra five pages to compensate. I hope you feel it's worth the wait.

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To those who have been reviewing:

BritishPixie- So pleased you're enjoying this. I hope it lives up to the anticipation. So glad you gave me the idea in the first place.

Phantom's Ange- glad you're enjoying the teasing. It'll go on for awhile, but the next couple chapters should have at least some sense of fulfilled teasing.

Soaring hawk- I'm thrilled you like the pairing. It's always fun playing with new characters in a series you love. Also, sorry again for the delay. I wanted to get things just right. It is nice to know you're still reading and enjoying though. I never mind an encouraging kick in the ass, for example: you're killing me with the wait, please post more!

Jokerisdabest- I promise to give notice here or on my profile if I'm taking a hiatus that's more than a two weeks. Sometimes it takes awhile to write, revise and do a continuity check in less than 2-3 weeks depending on how insane the rest of my life is.

maggie56- I won't say anything about the plot, you'll just have to keep reading , but thank you so much for all your thoughtful compliments. I use fanfic to help me refine specific skills depending on where I'm at with the rest of my writing (among other things) and it's great to know the skills I'm working on are indeed sharpening.

BTW for any cannon movie fans: Michael can't eat food because he's a hybrid, but full Lycans in the movie adapted books can. I spend a lot of time researching this sort of thing for my personal writing, but while this series is based on a combination of the books based on the movies and the movies themselves. I am probably going to add in things from the RPG the movies are based on and my own artistic inspirations. Stay with me, I'll try to making breaking the rules worthwhile. (I haven't had any complaints, yet, but I like to anticipate and address concerns) Also the words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested.

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**Chapter 4: Satisfying Hungers**

[Beautiful Disaster, Blood & Chocolate Score, Strictly Physical]

At Sabas's announcement that Sabine was coming down the hall to check in on them, Aleeria jumped back as if she'd been electrocuted. Turning suddenly from Sabas, she took deep, steadying breaths; calming herself and putting her hair back up into a knot. Then she turned back to Sabas, carefully schooling her thoughts toward a critical analysis of her progress thus far. Aleeria was fairly pleased with what she observed. Aleeria couldn't see one speck of dirt anywhere on his body that she'd attended to thus far. Sabas's leather vest was drying nicely near the fire. She decided to get to cleaning his bracers until Sabine arrived. It would allow her to focus her mind on something other than what she and Sabas had been doing moments before.

Aleeria was midway through brushed mud off the first bracer, when a thought occurred to her and she hissed to Sabas, "If she speaks to you, remember to reply only in hushed tones."

Sabas nodded to let her know he heard her and the resumed trying to calm himself. He knew Sabine was likely to assume any signs of heightened arousal on his part were mainly due to the length of time since he'd been around a non-vampire female, but he saw no reason to take chances that might get Aleeria into trouble or get himself turned into a rug.

Sabine smiled to herself slightly when she heard Aleeria's instructions to Sabas. Aleeria must have sensed she was near. Over the years, Aleeria had developed an uncanny awareness of when her Mistress was near. Sabine found it to be a most helpful trait and it had seemed to help Aleeria keep her distance from other vampires over the years, and thus, aiding her survival. Sabine wondered if Aleeria realized yet that Sabas was the Lycan who saved her, but more importantly, Sabine wondered how Aleeria and Sabas were getting along. She entered the room, and saw Sabas stripped and cleaned from the waist up while Aleeria stood at attention beside a table where she was cleaning something.

"Aleera," Sabine greeted. "I was about to go to sleep and wanted to check in on you first. I see you are making good progress." She spoke as through Sabas were a piece of furniture Aleeria was restoring. "I also brought you some soap to use with the water once you get all the dirt off. It will help with the smell."

Aleeria bowed slightly. "Thank you Mistress it was most kind of you."

Sabine waved the comment off. "It is as much for my benefit as his. Please use it to go over his upper half again before you continue to the bottom. I also brought some tools to give him a good shave and trim up his hair. Cleaning his teeth wouldn't be remiss either." Sabine finished wrinkling her nose slightly while laying a basket down on the table near where Aleeria stood.

Aleeria nodded and looked at Sabas's face appraisingly. "How would you like him groomed, My Lady?"

Sabas barely restrained himself from rolling his eyes. He felt like a pet dog being prepared for show.

Sabine noted small lines of concern around Aleeria's eyes that indicated she had definite opinions about what hair she would or would not like trimmed from his head. Sabine smiled magnanimously. "I leave it to your good judgment. Just make sure the result is tidy, but there's not need to give him cropped hair or shave all the hair from him face unless it particularly bothers you or he wishes it."

Aleeria and Sabas both raised their eye brows. It was the first time she'd spoken about Sabas as if his thoughts mattered at all.

Sabine chuckled. "I am not completely oblivious to your opinions Lycan," She replied to the unspoken question. "They will be counted when there are circumstances such as this where the decision matters little to me. Aleeria, is there anything more that you require to finish your task?"

Aleeria considered her next task, to bathe Sabas's lower half, it sent pleasant tingles through her skin. She tried to focus on the practical half of that task and noted that his boots and the lower bit of his pant legs were in the manacles around his ankles. "Mistress, would you allow me to unshackle his ankles to remove his boots? I can wriggle the pants out I'm sure, but the boots will be most difficult to remove otherwise."

Sabine offered her a warm nod, appreciating her handmaiden's unfailing attention to detail with any task set before her. She could tell that Sabas was enjoying Aleeria's attention to detail as well, whether Aleeria was aware of the extent or not. Of course, soon enough Aleeria would doubtless be fully aware of her effect upon the Lycan. Sabine nearly chuckled at the thought. Ah, to be young once more, she mused inwardly. Aloud, she focused her words on Aleeria. "You are quite right Aleeria. Here," She handed Aleeria the key. "Unlock them now and remove his boots and pull his pants clear and then re-shackle him." Sabine was no fool; Sabas would not try to escape if Aleeria were doing this thing. He would never attack her, Sabine was certain of that much.

Aleeria took the key from Sabine's hand, hoping that Sabas was smart enough to realize that this was a test and he needed to pass. She unlocked his right ankle, running her fingers along his ankle as if checking for damage, enjoying getting to feel yet one more piece of him. His pants were tucked into his knee high boots. Aleeria undid the buckles along the side of his boot and gently eased it off, running her hand over his leather-clad calf afterwards to relieve any stiffness, her mind mutinously replaying his words from earlier about needing to relieve his stiffness. She hid the smile carefully in her thoughts.

Aleeria looked up the length of his pants; they were buckled along the sides, which she noted with some relief. She would not have to remove his pants as well while the manacles were off, which meant she wouldn't have to do so in front of Sabine. Removing Sabas's pants was a task Aleeria was highly anticipating and she did not want to share the moment. She also was concerned that Sabine might sense how tempted she was by Sabas and was not at all sure what would happen if her interest were revealed. Sabine might decide it was too great a temptation and have someone else finish cleaning Sabas. So, Aleeria pulled his pant leg clear and re-shackled his right ankle, barely resisting the urge to give him an apologetic glance, then repeated her actions with his left. Aleeria doubted if either Sabas or her Mistress had any idea how much putting chains back onto him hurt her in heart and spirit. When she was done, she stood and stepped away, waiting for the approving nod of her Mistress.

Sabine nodded, "There, you should have not more difficulties cleaning him now. I'll get myself to bed and leave you to your work."

Sabine left the room, the key, still in Aleeria's pocket. For a handful of heartbeats, Aleeria considered keeping it, but she knew her Mistress well. She followed her Mistress out the door, closing it behind her. "My Lady, the key, you forgot it." She held the key out in front of her.

Sabine smiled briefly in catlike satisfaction, hiding it as she turned to let Aleeria place the key in her hand. "Thank you little one. I must be more tired than I thought to have almost forgotten it. Have the guard at the end of the hall let me know when you are done and I'll come back to inspect your finished work."

* * *

Aleeria went back into the interrogation room, leaning against the back of the door as she closed it. "Well, that went better than I thought it might." Aleeria sighed. "I'm glad you heard her. That could have been very awkward."

"Indeed, very awkward," Sabas agreed, his expression suddenly roguish once more.

"I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean to speak of you in front of her as if you were a pet, I just-"

"You were just trying to be what she expects," Sabas interrupted. "No apologies needed. You've made it quite clear that you don't see me as a pet, which is much appreciated incidentally."

Aleeria turned to look over the tools Sabine left behind. "I think we'll start with that hair cut and shave before I rewash everything else."

"I see, so you want to tease me with anticipation at having you back up on that bench?" His eyes twinkled mischievously.

Aleeria blushed, grinning. "That is not my intention, but not an unwelcome benefit. I was thinking it made more sense to wash you second to get the rest of the trimmed hairs cleaned away." She pulled a step stool to his side and began to re-wet and lather his hair, enjoying the feel of it once more. Sabas sighed as she scrubbed away enjoying the feel of her hands massaging his scalp. When his hair was clean and damp, Aleeria began took a scissors and comb from the basket and began to comb out Sabas's hair, trimming away the end bits of his hair that had become rougher and more prone to snarls.

She stood back to admire the result. He really did look handsome with his long, dark hair falling around his face. "That looks cleaner. Do you want it shorter?" She asked a little reluctantly.

Sabas chuckled. "Not particularly. It sounds as though you don't either."

Aleeria smiled sheepishly, "No, not particularly," she echoed. "I'm quite fond of it long. But if you'd prefer I cut off more, I will," She added hastily.

"I'm pleased you like it so much." He smiled at her in a way that made her insides melt.

"What do you want me to do for your shave?"

"I haven't seen my reflection in decades. Why don't you clean it up and tell me whether you think it would look better that way or entirely shaven off?" Sabas offered.

Aleeria smiled. "Very sound reasoning." She put away the scissors and took out a rather sharp looking straight razor and a bottle of olive oil. She smoothed some of the oil over his left cheek in the places she wished to remove the hairs that seemed to be less part of the whole and more scruffy, noting that while he made a small sound of enjoying her touch, he stayed quite still, rather than moving closer to her touch as he had before. Aleeria moved the razor into view. "Hold still, I'll be very careful."

"I trust you, but if you do nick me I will heal quite quickly," he reassured her, nodding.

Aleeria offered a weak smile and began to carefully shave the areas she'd coated, cleaning the blade thoroughly after each pass. When she'd finished removing the hair that seemed out of place, she washed his face and stepped back to admire her work. He looked quite handsome now. He was attractive to her before, but with his appearance tidied, he seemed to have an almost regal look about him. She stepped closer again, running the pads of her fingers over his cheek to make sure she'd given him a smooth shave. She was checking along the right side of his face and found her gaze resting on his lips instead of his cheek.

Aleeria could feel Sabas watching her, his entire attention focused on this moment, his body tensed. She looked into his bold grey blue eyes and felt lost. She could feel herself start to lean in and snapped her eyes shut, taking several reluctant steps back. She turned away, not wanting to see his face yet and leaned her hands flat on the table, taking deep, steadying breaths.

Sabas didn't say anything. He didn't want to spook her but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't sorely disappointed she's stopped herself, resisted the compelling gravity of the moment.

"I'm sorry," She whispered, knowing he could still hear her, and unable to find her voice. "It's not that I don't want to or haven't thought about it."

"What is it then?" He asked softly, gently.

"I'm afraid that if I kiss you, I won't be able to stop." She replied shakily. "I'm supposed to be 'wholly untouched,' remember?" She turned now, coming closer, so he could see that she felt conflicted about this. It was important he know.

"I thought we'd already ruined that," Sabas teased, trying to lighten the moment.

Aleeria rewarded his efforts with a saucy grin. "Hardly, it is my duty to bathe you. I couldn't help it if I had to lean against your hand to clean your arm. I'm quite short compared to you, you know."

"I see; well the matter of your height has its advantages. I'd be happy to show you once I'm free of these chains. I don't suppose you have a key for these?" He shook his arms in emphasis.

"No, but even if I did, it would be most dangerous for both of us for me to use it. My Mistress is no fool she would guess why you were not in your bonds."

"And why would that be?" His voice smoothly dropping lower, more suggestive.

"You know why," Aleeria replied, blushing and gazing at him through her lashes flirtatiously. "She pretended to forget it you know."

"What do you mean?"

"When I followed her into the hall, it was to give her the key. She was testing me, I could tell. She likes to do things like that, just so you know. She likes to test the loyalty of others in subtle ways. She wanted to see if I would give her the key back once I realized she'd left without it."

"Answer me this: was it easy to give up the key?" His voice had a testing, caustic edge to it.

"No, but it was the better decision nevertheless. You won't be chained up forever and it would have been foolish of me to risk it for a temporary inconvenience." Aleeria replied resolutely.

She looked at the heavy iron and silver collar her wore more inquisitively, suddenly wondering how it would be when she wore one, when she was the one in bondage. "Do you think you could you shift and destroy the collar before it killed you?"

Sabas half smiled at her wryly, surprised at the sudden change in topic. "I don't know, but I'm not very interested in trying. I might despise wearing it, but I'd only get to mess up once attempting to remove it. Besides the penalty for removing our collar ourselves is death if we survive the attempt. Even with our healing abilities, if one splinter of silver remained from the spikes, it would poison us."

Aleeria nodded, resigned, feeling old fears rise up in her chest to choke her. "I can see why you'd be reluctant to experiment."

Sabas eyed Aleeria suspiciously. "Why do you ask?"

"You said before that vampires have a tendency to underestimate Lycans. I was curious to know if Lycans are not as under their control as they think." Aleeria answered honestly.

"Spying for your Mistress?" He spat. It came out harsher than he'd meant it to, but he couldn't help but wonder for a few heartbeats if he was the one being beguiled.

Aleeria winced as though he'd slapped her. "No. I just wanted a better feel for what my world will be like; what my limitations will be. I'll be in one of those collars one day, don't forget, and bound just as you are." She replied softly.

Sabas cursed and tried to inch closer to her in what he hoped was a reassuring manner. Here he was trying to prove to her that he was the decent person she seemed to think he was, and he'd accused her of being a spy. He deserved to be whipped. How long had it been since someone not of his kind had treated him with the respect due to an equal? Perhaps it had been longer than he could recall. "I'm sorry. That was very rude of me. I'm afraid my social skills are severely out of practice."

Aleeria shrugged, not making eye contact. "It's fine. It's a fair question. I will be asked questions about today and I will answer them, but I wouldn't say anything incriminating. I know better than that. It's not a question of loyalties," She pressed on. "I just don't think you have any sentiments towards vampires in general that are unusual for someone who's been a slave to one lot or another all their lives. If I thought you were dangerous, I wouldn't be telling you even this much."

"Aleeria, please look at me." Sabas pleaded, needing to ease the hurt he'd put in her eyes and tone, the hurt that had slowed her heart to a plodding thump, thump. He could feel something in her had receded like a snail that senses danger and withdraws its sensitive feelers back into the shell, no longer wishing to be curious about the outside world, no longer feeling it's safe to be so.

Aleeria slowly looked up, meeting his piercing blue gray eyes that seemed to peer directly into her heart.

"I'm very sorry. I had no reason to say such things." Sabas's voice was low and coaxing.

"Yes you did," Aleeria argued quietly, ashamed of whom she served and what she must represent to _her Lycan_. "Look at how they treated you for saving me. They immediately assumed that you were trying to assault me and whipped you raw before my Mistress could stop them. Why would you think that I, who has served them all my life, would be any different?"

Sabas cast about for some way to tell her why he trusted her without explaining it as an instinctual thing and the classic phrase: 'I just know,' which felt like a cop out. "Because you have treated me with more dignity and concern in these last few hours than anyone has ever shown me since I've been turned," he confessed. And because I can literally hear the way your heart beats for me, he thought.

"Like I said," Aleeria pressed. "If anyone deserves my respect, you do. I owe you at least that much. I was just thinking the collar would feel less unbearable if I thought it might be possible to get it off without the key. You know, if I needed to protect someone and I needed my Lycan form to do so. I just don't want to be helpless again, watching William's kind destroying my life all over again. If they got in and I couldn't shape shift to protect the people who matter . . ."

"Shush," Sabas soothed. "Trust our Lycan friends at the front gate. They won't leave us unprotected. Besides, Lycans can't change at will until you're about a century old. Unless William's kind were foolish enough to attack under a full moon, you would still be unable to change."

"That only makes it worse. You would be able to change then, to protect us, to protect me, but because of that damn collar you'd have to watch, helpless."

"I won't let anything happen to you." Sabas growled fiercely.

"You might not be able to prevent it." Aleeria reasoned. "We need more allies in this castle. I hope Sabine's gambit helps the others to see that we can trust the Lycans, that they could be allies, not slaves. You have a real chance here to help them see that, just don't lose sight of why that's important."

Sabas felt his blood stirring at her words. She spoke the way Lucian could sometimes to compel others to rally. He also felt a stabbing of fear. She wasn't wrong. They could all be in great danger as things stood now if the wild Lycans ever mounted a full assault on the castle. "You're right," he agreed. "That's one of the reasons I want to do well with this posting. I hope you'll help me, us, all of us that are given this chance to do our best, so in time perhaps we can raise the status of all Lycans."

"I will," Aleeria promised. "I'll help you learn how do serve well, so they see you as something better than a beast of burden." So they see you more as I do, she thought.

Sabas smiled gently. "Just as long as you don't get into trouble for helping us."

"I won't," She assured him quickly. "Sabine will expect me, as a more experienced servant of her house, to help train you in those matters I am able to."

Sabas chuckled. "Perhaps then she will have you show me how to bathe myself one of these days."

Aleeria flashed him a cheeky grin, "Perhaps, although I would miss having you at my mercy to do the task myself."

Sabas felt his heart lighten, that they seemed to be getting back on an even keel. "I do so enjoy being at your mercy," he continued, his voice low and seductive. "Perhaps you can bathe me for special occasions then, when I need to be especially pristine."

"Perhaps. Although there is one advantage to teaching you how to bathe yourself." Aleeria pointed out, looking at him under the veil of her eye lashes.

"Oh yes?" Sabas asked, intrigued.

"In that scenario, we would both be unchained and we would both be wet." She replied, her voice low, almost suggestive.

He grinned at her roguishly, thinking to his own private amusement that between what he could scent of her and his damp hair, they were both arguably wet already. "Yes, that would be a great advantage," Sabas agreed. "I might need multiple lessons or refresher courses from time to time; you know how forgetful and slow we Lycans are."

"Well as I said, anything I can do to help educate you on being more civilized." Aleeria teased back. "Besides, it's only fair since you are helping me to become more proficient at torture that I help you become-."

"House trained?" he suggested, laughing.

"Hmm. Well if my Mistress truly sees you as a pet, perhaps if you are very well-behaved, I can convince her to let you sleep at the foot of my bed to keep me warm." She grinned cheekily at him again.

"It would be my great honor to sleep at your feet." Sabas replied, his tone suggesting he wasn't entirely joking. "I imagine I could show you all sorts of delightful things about your sensitive feet." He eyed her feet now, raising an eye brow.

Aleeria thought she might spontaneously combust if the conversation went much further. "I'm halfway done with you now," She began, changing the subject before it digressed further. "I'm starting to get hungry, are you?"

"Ravenous." Sabas rumbled, eyeing her keenly.

"So, what do Lycans eat?" Aleeria continued, trying not to let his stare hypnotize her. "Should I have them bring you blood, raw meat, what?"

Sabas hesitated, "I can eat either of those options, but I'd prefer not to in front of you."

"Please, I serve vampires. I've seen them feed. It doesn't upset me. Besides, I know what happens to most of my kind," Aleeria replied in a tone she meant to be reassuring.

"_Your_ kind?" Sabas repeated, confused.

"Human, especially female," Aleeria clarified. "We don't live must past puberty here. We're usually raped, drained, and fed to the Lycans before we reach adulthood. I'm one of the only exceptions to that fate. I'm young and innocent in a number of ways, but I'm not a fool," Aleeria replied, trying to keep her voice level. She'd seen it happen once or twice, but always, Sabine had been by her elbow, keeping her safe.

"You shouldn't know that," Sabas repaid, his voice filled with shame and embarrassment.

"I know what I need to," Aleeria replied obstinately. "Sabine made sure of that, showing me what would happen if I wasn't careful, so I understood why I needed to follow her instructions for where I could go and when and with whom. If my Mistress weren't so protective, you could've eaten me by now like the others, and never known the difference."

"I fully intend to devour you, but not the way you're talking about," Sabas replied, his expression was roguish, but there was a tone in his voice that let her know her words disturbed him deeply. To think that he could have aided in her death and disposal as if she were no more than garbage to be processed made him sick at heart.

"I'm going to be one of you soon," Aleeria continued. "I might eat better than most Lycans because of whom I serve, but I'll hunger for blood and flesh, just like you. I'm not going to be disgusted. They'll get me just about anything I request, so I'll ask again: What are you hungry for?"

"We can eat human food too, just not all the time," Sabas replied, a little defensively. "I haven't had a decent steak since I was human."

"Then I'll request two, bloody." Aleeria replied, grinning.

"And what will you eat?" He asked his voice serious and teasing all at once.

Aleeria laughed a little. "I didn't realize one steak would not be enough. I'll request three then and bread or potatoes if they have it. Will that be enough for you?"

"It sounds wonderful. Thank you." He replied.

Aleeria stepped closer, cupping the left side of his face in her hand and running her thumb along his jaw ridge. "You don't need to be ashamed with me. I don't see you the way most of the vampires do. I'll be right back. I'm going to see to our food and then I'll be back to soap you up."

Sabas leaned into her hand. "I'll look forward to your return then."

* * *

Aleeria went over moved down the whole hallway carefully. She knew this hallway should be safe, but Sabine had taught her to be ever vigilant to stay alive. Aleeria reached the end of the hallway without incident. There at the end of the hallway, standing guard was Lucian. Aleeria could almost have sworn she felt a vampire nearby and the sound of footsteps disappearing down a nearby passage when she approached Lucian, but he seemed so calm, so nonchalant, that she was certain she must have been mistaken. In her experience, Lycans were never calm when a Vampire was near.

"Hello, Lucian," Aleeria greeted. "Does Sabine have you watching over me again?"

Sabine periodically had Lucian watch the entrance to the tower Aleeria frequented during the day when she watched the Lycans. It was only during times when Lucian wasn't needed for black smithing work or Sabine could find no one else she trusted. The more Aleeria considered the measures Sabine used to keep her safe, the more strange it seemed to Aleeria. Why would a vampire take so much time and effort to protect a human no matter how well she served? It was a question she'd need to ponder further in the future.

"So it would seem," He replied, smiling in that sad, ironic way she was so familiar with. "What can I do for you, little human?"

"I'd like to request dinner for the kitchens."

Lucian nodded. "Your Mistress said you would be by about that. Give me your order and I'll walk you back to the room before I go to the kitchens."

Aleeria looked at him, puzzled.

"Sabine told me to lock you in while I'm away from my post." Lucian explained gently taking her arm and beginning to walk Aleeria back down the hallway, "For your own protection. I have to say, I am curious as to what you are doing all day in an interrogation room by yourself. Learning the art of torture are you?"

Aleeria looked up and caught, Lucian's teasing smile and giggled. "Well, I suppose that depends on your perspective. My prisoner assures me that it is torture, though he doesn't seem to mind too much."

Lucian raised his eye brows. "And just whom are you torturing and how, little human?"

"Mistress asked me to bathe Sabas before he enters service to our house as a daylight guardian," Aleeria explained, trying to sound casual about it.

Lucian's mouth quirked into a smile hearing her heart speed up as she said Saba's name, "I see. I can see why Sabas might term that torture. It's not every day that one such as us is bathed by such a lovely creature as you."

Aleeria blushed, Lucian was often complimenting her, but Aleeria thought of it as a private joke between them, like his way of calling her little human, which always sounded like little sister to her.

Lucian caught her expression and chuckled. "So Sabas is to be one of the testing subjects for your Mistress's pet project."

Aleeria looked at him sharply. "How do you know about that?"

"You'd be surprised how well informed I am, little human. Besides, I am the first of this new class of Lycans for all intents and purposes, though I will be hunting with the Death Dealers instead of guarding by day. I suppose that was part of your Mistress's reason for wanting a guard for your house during the daylight. If I am increasing my duties, I will not have much time to watch you anymore."

"I suppose not. Then it would seem she intends for Sabas to keep an eye on me during the day and likely during my monthly retreats as well." Aleeria concluded. Since she reached puberty, Sabine had wisely sent Aleeria into seclusion in her tower during her times of moon blood as her scent was far too tempting for her to be around any of the vampires then. Lucian would often keep an eye on the door to the tower during those times as Lycans could resist the scent better since their diet consisted of more than blood. Lucian was particularly proficient with his control as he was a born Lycan, his nature a part of him since conception. Young Lycans had more trouble controlling their bloodlust as it was new to their genetic makeup and they were still integrating the change.

Aleeria suddenly realized that Lucian was speaking to her and she'd not heard a word of it as she was still transfixed by the idea of Sabas as her protector. She shook her head, trying to focus. "I'm sorry Lucian. What was that?"

Lucian chuckled. "Nothing of importance. I'll let you get back to your prisoner." Lucian led her back into the room and locked it behind her. "I'll return with your food shortly," Lucian promised and headed swiftly back down the hallway.

Aleeria turned away from the door and moved towards the soap and her wash basin. "Lucian is getting our food. While we wait, I may as well rewash your top half so we can work our way down after lunch." She tried not to let her breath catch at the thought.

"That sounds promising," Sabas replied his tone rough and low, his groin tightening in anticipation.

Aleeria started with his back, washing his skin with the soap and water, cleaning away all the bits of hair clean from his trim away and making him smell more like the soap. She missed his own scent a little, but found she could smell it coming through once he was dry and mingling with the sandalwood scent. She moved quickly washing him; feeling hyper self- conscious knowing that their food would arrive shortly and that they had a limited amount of time alone until then. Aleeria was far too aware of the brevity of that waiting time and the memory of the shock when her Mistress had interrupted them before to touch Sabas more than was necessary, though she wanted to desperately.

Her eyes kept seeking his out, trying to tell Sabas without words that she wasn't ashamed, only cautious. It was most difficult when she washed his arms and chest. She so wanted to let him touch her again and to touch him again, but it was too risky. Now that Aleeria had enjoyed a taste of how things could be between them, she didn't want to do anything that would ruin their chances for her to be able to choose him. They could enjoy so much more then and without needing to fear being caught or her being damaged by his strength. She'd be like him then.

Aleeria was doing well at resisting him until only his arms remained. She moved the bench so she could reach them as she had before, but this time, much to Sabas's confusion, she kept herself off to the side, completely out of reach and began washing his arm and the edge of his shoulder. Aleeria didn't know what to say or if she should tell him that she was concerned about getting caught. The whole situation made the room thick with tensions of needs unmet and words unspoken.

It was Sabas who broke first. The feel of her hands gliding over him as she rewashed his body was intoxicating. He was surprised that she seemed to move efficiently, not lingering as she had before. He could scent her arousal keenly enough, yet she did not seek to please either of them. He thought at first, that she was hurrying through the rest to get back to stroking his chest, but she cleaned it as swiftly, though thoroughly as the rest. Then he thought that perhaps she was simply teasing him again, but when she positioned herself to wash his arms so he could not touch her, he knew something was amiss. "Aleeria, please let me touch you again while you do that," he asked softly, wondering if he or Lucian had done or said something to make her cautious.

Aleeria glanced, concerned towards the door.

"I will hear when Lucian returns," he assured her, noting the path of her eyes. "Besides, he is my friend. He would not betray us. Come, let me please you again. You have been so attentive to me, your touch so pleasurable. I only wish to return the favor, if you wish it."

Aleeria looked at him sharply, desperate for him to understand. "Of course I wish it. How can you think otherwise? I simply don't want to endanger us." She heard herself, the way she said _us_, the way he said _us_, as if there were already something established between them and they were only acknowledging it at last. Wasn't that the truth of it though? It was for her certainly. Something in the way he said those words made her feel the weight of the years of watching and wanting and now finally after all that time, she could touch him and he could touch her, at least a little for now.

"I promise we'll be fine," Sabas continued, starting to guess at her internal war. "The whole castle is asleep and no Lycan would come down here to the interrogation rooms willingly. Please sweet Aleeria come closer, I won't bite. _Yet_."

Aleeria laughed at that, even as a quiet thrill coursed through her. _Yet_. Maybe he felt it too then. "You know, some might call this beguiling, my prisoner."

Sabas smiled triumphantly, feeling he was winning the battle. "Perhaps fair captor, but you are free to ignore me if my request holds no interest for you or if you feel you cannot trust my keen senses to keep us safe."

He said the two words that melted whatever fraying reservations remained with Aleeria: "us" and "trust." Of course she trusted him. She'd always trusted him. She stepped carefully along the bench, ducking under his arm and positioning herself within his reach. She smiled at him shyly and then released her hair, letting it hide them behind a flowing dark chestnut privacy curtain.

Sabas watched her, his face full of eagerness, but also a gentle awe. He still marveled that she seemed to want him to touch her.

Aleeria shifted her position, and pressed her breast in to his palm, moaning involuntarily at the contact and biting her lower lip. Then, she took his hand in her fingers and pressed him closer still.

Sabas sighed, closing his eyes contentedly. "If I weren't chained up right now, I'd make your first touches much more memorable."

Aleeria smiled, pleasure at both his words and touch singing through her veins, burning her skin pleasantly. "I think you're doing just fine. Besides, if you were not chained, you would not be allowed to touch me."

"Is that your wish or hers?" He asked, his voice taking on that testing edge again, his hand stilled.

"Please don't think my fear is an indication of my want." She boldly moved his thumb with hers so it brushed over her nipple, hardened beyond anything it had been before. "See? I merely want you to be allowed to do this when you are free as well, and I don't want to have my mate selected for me. T'would be torture." Torture, to be bound to anyone but you, she thought desperately.

"I want that to, to touch you without these chains in the way." Sabas confessed. "Or your clothes for that matter," he added, grinning wickedly.

Aleeria blushed, and Sabas could feel the rush of heat under his hand even through the linen of her dress. "I still say that you've just been without a woman for too long."

"The more time I spend with you the more I start to think I've never really enjoyed one properly before." Sabas replied starting to stroke her through her dress as he had before. Aleeria hissed in a breath, making a soft keening sound.

"I suppose I won't be too hopeless then when it comes time to be a wife." Aleeria's tone was joking, but he could still hear real concern behind it too.

Sabas paused his exploration of her breast. "Aleeria, look at me." Her eyes opened slowly at his request, looking almost sleepy. "Aleeria, the way you touched me before we were so rudely interrupted was beyond wonderful. Don't you know how you affect me? As I said before, you are far from hopeless. In fact, you seem to be rather intuitive in fact as to what would please me."

Aleeria smiled broadly with feminine pride. "I'm pleasing my own curiosity as much as anything else," she confessed. "I hardly know what I'm doing."

"Then perhaps it is simply more pleasurable because you are enjoying what you are doing so much," he offered with sly smile.

"Perhaps," She replied, wiping his arm down with clean water. "Do you enjoy what you are doing to me now?"

Sabas grinned wolfishly. "Oh very much indeed," he assured her, beginning to stroke her again. "You are so soft and so responsive."

Aleeria clutched at his arm again as she felt the pleasure begin to build again and with it a burning, a need for him to touch her other places as well. When she felt her legs begin to wobble dangerously, she stepped down, much to both their disappointment. When she recovered, Aleeria moved to his right arm, lathering it first off to his side and then soaping and rinsing off his hand before moving back within his reach. She rinsed off his arm as he started to stimulate her left breast as he had her right, stroking the edges with his long, deft fingers, running his thumb over her impossibly hard nipple, making her start to cry out. Aleeria felt her mind awash in pleasure. Periodically, Sabas would gently squeeze her soft curve in his hand, his thumb, brushing more firmly over the tip. Aleeria could feel a rush of wetness between her thighs, a building , tingling heat, and a desperate desire for him to touch her there, if only there was a stool high enough or any sort of reason for her to be on it other than for him to touch her there. Some way for him to stroke her there without getting them both whipped raw though she was starting to wonder if it might be worth it. The sort of pleasure Sabas could bring her might be worth bleeding for.

Sabas moaned with her, she felt so good and warm, and supple beneath his fingers. He wanted to have her move the bench so he could press her to his mouth, to lick at her skin and hear her cry out to him.

Naturally, this was the moment that the sound of footsteps returning to their cell came to his ears. Groaning, Sabas lifted his hand away, just slightly. "Aleeria, I am sorry, but Lucian is returning."

She groaned softly, "Not again."

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***What can I say? I love a long seduction and I'm having so much fun drawing things out . . . Please read & review. It's keeping the ideas flowing and keeping me from losing my mind while working like 60 hours a week. Let me know if you enjoyed the extra long chapter.***


	5. Caught Wet Handed

A/N: Again the words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested. Just a reminder, I will update my profile with the date of the next post once I have an estimate, so it's a good place to check, but you're welcome to private message me too if you want to know.

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Soaring Hawk- thanks for the encouragement with work. Only one more month of serious crazy and then it'll all level out. This story is seriously helping me get through it. I'm glad the wait was worth it.

maggie56- I love bookworms, being one myself. Thank you so much for the heads up about the spelling of Lucian. My stupid computer was trying to correct me and I was foolish to listen without checking into it. All previous chapters have been corrected and re-posted and all future chapters should reflect the change. I'm glad you love the detail. I revise a lot to make sure I haven't left out something important. I'm just having so much fun telling this story.

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**Chapter 5: Caught Wet-Handed**

[Strictly Physical, Blood & Chocolate Score]

Aleeria nodded, slowly stepping off the bench, feeling half drunk on want and need. She'd been close to something, she could feel it. She wasn't certain what it was, but she wanted it desperately and she was certain that she could imagine a few ways she could reach it . . . if Sabas weren't chained to the floor and ceiling. She fumbled through putting her hair back into place, eliciting a small whine from Sabas. She was about to ask him what was upsetting him, when the key began to turn in the lock.

Lucian stepped into the room scenting the arousal of both occupants like an overwhelming wave. He glanced around at them, curious, but they both seemed to look more or less as they should be. Aleeria certainly didn't look as though she'd just thrown her dress back on, though her hair seemed a bit more untidy. Then he noticed something that gave it all away.

"Aleeria, Sabas," Lucian greeted pleasantly. "Lunch is served. I'll just put this on the table." He looked Sabas over critically. "Well Sabas you certainly don't look too the worse for wear. I suppose Aleeria's torturing has only just begun.

"So it would seem," Sabas replied smoothly. "Be sure to tell the others not to worry about my welfare."

Lucian nodded, understanding the underlying message: Sabas was laying a claim on her. He wondered if Aleeria knew. He suspected not. "I'll just leave you two to your food then. Aleeria, you might want to be careful about getting your dress wet. It might raise questions with others." He headed out of the room without another word or so much as a backward glance.

When he was gone, Aleeria turned to Sabas, confusion and panic in her eyes. "What was he talking about?"

Sabas was visibly holding back laughter, the chains quivering with the effort. "I see what he means. We'll have to be more careful. Look at your dress Aleeria. We seem to have been caught wet-handed."

Aleeria glanced down and saw an unmistakable, large, wet handprint over her right breast. Mortified, she blushed down to the roots of her hair and went to the fireplace to dry herself, while Sabas chuckled.

"Lucian knows now. What if he heard us too?" Aleeria hissed. "This is just the sort of thing I was worried about."

"You make quite adorable sounds. If there were cats around here, he'd just think there was a particularly happy one in here." Sabas commented thoughtfully. And like any good dog, he'd love to chase this particular kitty.

Aleeria blushed further. "I see. I'll try to keep my cat noises to a minimum in the future."

"It's much better torture if you don't." Sabas argued, teasing. "Lucian won't betray us. If he was going to, he wouldn't have mentioned your dress." His tone reassured her, like a balm on her nerves.

Aleeria considered, the initial embarrassment and panic easing. "You're right. Besides, he's our friend. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have thought such things." She moved back to Sabas, her dress dry.

Sabas wished once again that he could touch her, to soothe her. "Don't be. You're just being careful. That's kept you alive a long time." Then his stomach rumbled, interrupting them.

Aleeria grinned. "Well your top half is all clean, trimmed, and shaved. Time for some food before we start on the bottom half," She suggested moving towards the food. "You're going to need to keep your energy up," she teased. Aleeria scanned the table and back as Sabas, realizing that she would have to feed him. "I'll be right back."

Before he could ask where she was going or tease her back, she was halfway out the door and down the hall. Sabas shook his head, for someone innocent of body; she certainly was becoming quite skilled at innuendo-saturated banter. She was so shy about it when she'd first come in and now she'd settled into an entirely different comfort level. Even better, she'd made it clear enough that she was not usually, what were her words? 'So bold.' It made her repartee with him all the more seductive, knowing she didn't speak like this with every male she spoke to at length. Though from what Aleeria said about Sabine's isolation of her, it was likely she rarely spoke to any male at length. That too pleased him. It was one of the many things that he was finding to be utterly enchanting about her; the way she made him feel like there was this hidden side to her that she was revealing inch by inch for him and him alone. It was a sort of mental and emotional seduction and by the gods it was working, weaving a spell around his thoughts like a sensuous haze.

Aleeria headed down the hallway towards the entrance where Lucian guarded them. "Lucian," Aleeria whispered when she reached the halfway point. "I need your help for just a moment. Please."

Lucian shadowed the entranceway and began to make his way towards her. "How can I be of service?"

"I need to move the table closer, so it's easier for me to feed him," She explained as he reached her. "And I wanted to thank you for your warning."

Lucian nodded. "Of course. Just be careful for both your sakes. Sabine will punish him far worse than you if she finds out that you've been in any way compromising her wishes."

Aleeria nodded, shuddering. "I never want to see him punished again, Lucian. Once was more than enough."

"Good." Lucian held open the door for her and Aleeria walked in and pointed to the table in question.

"If you could just move the table close enough that I won't spill when I feed him that would be perfect." Aleeria directed.

Lucian nodded. "You certainly are suffering today Sabas. Being bathed and fed by a beautiful woman. I wonder if every day is like this for a Blood."

Sabas grinned. "I certainly could get used to it."

"I'm sure you could." Lucian replied, tugging the table into place, careful not to disturb the contents of the tray he'd brought in. "I'll be keeping watch until nightfall. Just be careful not to attract unwanted attention. I'll do what I can to help."

Sabas exchanged a meaningful look with Lucian. "Thank you. If we can ever return the favor, we will."

Aleeria nodded. "Of course Lucian. Anytime." She enjoyed the way Sabas spoke for her, seeming to know her thoughts on the matter. It was another subtle gesture that seemed to join them.

Lucian nodded and headed towards the door. "Enjoy your food. Let me know when you want to food taken away."

Aleeria wanted to ask him how he could allude to whatever was happening between Sabas and herself so casually, but she felt it wasn't the right time to ask. It wasn't just that she didn't want Sabas to misunderstand her question and think she felt in any way shamed by their explorations. It was also that she was afraid if Lucian lingered too long, he would disrupt the moment that seemed to be building in the room, weaving a spell around them. She'd speak with Lucian later. There was probably something in her Mistress's house that needed his attention. If not, perhaps she'd ask her Mistress if she could have a dagger made for her for protection. It seemed like the sort of thing that Sabine would suggest soon enough anyway.

Aleeria moved herself over to the food, refocusing her attention and began to cut one of the steaks into small bites. There were potato patties with herbs as well and fresh bread. She speared a bite of meat and brought it to Sabas's mouth. He took it from the fork with surprising delicacy and began to chew, closing his eyes, and savoring it. Aleeria took a bite herself while he chewed. She took turns between feeding him and eating herself and drinking water from a wooden goblet.

Aleeria was stalling for time, focusing on feeding him. She knew it and was quite certain from the inquisitive looks he kept slanting at her that he knew it too. She was grateful that he was being patient and letting he work out the words in her head. "Sabas, I wanted to ask you something." Aleeria, began, her voice shivering with nerves.

"Anything," Sabas encouraged, invitingly.

"What we were talking about before Lucian came back," She faltered. "I just want to be sure you do not mind . . ." she couldn't finish it. She didn't know what to say. She was too shy to tell him how she felt about him, but she didn't want him to think that he was just convenient either.

Sabas grinned at her shyness, knowing what she was getting at. "Aleeria, as I said, I have no issue with you satisfying your curiosity with me or experimenting so you know how to please your future mate. After all, I have a certain stake in the results. Perhaps the mate you will be pleasing with these skills you seek to hone will be me."

"Perhaps," she replied, keeping the hopeful tone from her voice. She didn't want to seem desperate. "Still, I don't want you to feel I am taking advantage of you."

Sabas laughed so hard, his chains rattled violently. He stopped only when he could see that she was still troubled. "I'm sorry. You have to admit the idea of a human girl taking advantage of a Lycan does seem rather funny, given your Mistress's concerns."

Aleeria laughed along. "Yes, I suppose that does sound rather silly, but you are chained up securely, so you are relatively harmless to me for now. It's not as though you could stop me while you're shackled like that."

He frowned a bit. "I have no interest in stopping you even if I could. Aleeria, I promise you I am a willing victim of your tortures. If you're still unconvinced, I'll tell you how to you could satisfy your uncertainty."

Aleeria eyed him curiously. "How?"

Sabas glanced at her smiling slyly. "Unlike females, males have a more obvious display of interest. I'm sure you've noticed," he explained calmly, his voice low, suggestive.

Indeed she had, it was all she could think about at the moment. Aleeria was innocent in many ways, but she'd lived in the castle long enough to know of the goings on between men and women. Besides, she did know horses and she knew how the stallions became when a mare was in heat. Still, the idea that Sabas could be having such a reaction because of her was powerful, intoxicating.

"If you're curious," he continued. "You could feel my 'interest' out."

Sabas readjusted his stance and Aleeria's gaze was once more drawn down. She noticed that his pants did seem tighter. She looked more closely and could see an outline of his length under the leather and blushed.

Aleeria's eyes focused sharply on his. "I see. Does your 'interest' like to be touched?" She asked, her tone coy, though her gaze remained intense.

"Very much, but only do so if you wish to," Sabas replied, trying to keep his voice even, surprised once more by her apparent eagerness.

Aleeria grinned, delighted by the idea. She placed her hand over his heart softly, but firmly and slid it down his body until it rested over him. She felt a dark thrill course up her arm through her hand as she made contact. In her excitement, a rather naughty joke began to form. He was part wolf after all. "Is your 'interest' anything like a tail?" She asked beginning to trace his outline and watching fascinated as the outline seemed to grow in size and definition.

Sabas caught a glint of something mischievous in her eyes and quirked his mouth in response. "Perhaps, it certainly likes to be stroked like a tail and it can be a good indicator of my mood."

Aleeria bit back a giggle, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "I see. So, I should stroke your 'tail' with the fur then? From base to tip?" She mimicked the motion with her fingers, petting him through the leather.

Sabas's eyes went darker in an instant, his breath ragged. "Not exactly," he replied, focusing his thoughts growing more difficult. His body had felt electrified when she made contact, but as she continued, he felt the sizzle of it slowly liquefy his mind. "As it is not my actual tail, alternating directions is not at all uncomfortable; the complete opposite as a matter of fact. It enjoys a certain amount of friction, unlike my furred tail."

Aleeria did giggle this time. "I'm sorry, but there's something about the idea of you having an actual tail."

"Something funny?" Sabas asked his tone incrementally less playful, his sensitivity about being turned into a Lycan rising to the surface.

Aleeria leaned to his ear to whisper, "Not funny, no. It makes me feel excited thinking about you having a furry tail too. Is that strange?"

He felt the momentarily ruffled feelings melt away, soothed and aroused by her sentiments. "If it is, I love strange," Sabas replied, rumbling low in his throat and nuzzling his head gently against hers while she was so close. He was rewarded with a started "Oh," followed by a reciprocal purr of pleasure.

Aleeria began to pet his 'furless tail' back and forth lightly, testing and was likewise rewarded with another low rumble of pleasure near her ear. "Like this?" She asked softly.

"Yes," Sabas hissed. "There is more I would tell you, but it will have to wait until I am not longer in confinement." He adjusted both his stance and shook his shackled wrists, to make sure she understood that he referred to both the chains and his increasingly tight leather pants.

After a few more moments, she reluctantly pulled away. "Then I suppose we'll both just have to be patient," Aleeria replied, smiling quietly at him. "We should finish our lunch before it gets cold." She reasoned.

Sabas only nodded, closing his eyes and trying to regain some measure of control while she turned to get the food. He'd slipped before speaking for both of them to Lucian as if they were already one. He wasn't sure what was happening in this room, but he found himself using words and phrases that wove a bond between them or maybe it just reinforced the one that seemed to always be there. Words like "yet," "trust," "us," "both," and phrases like "next time" or "someday" took on new tremulous importance. It was strange. He had only interacted with her once before today and though he'd watched her grow up and it had filled him with a sense of knowing her, he hadn't actually been in her world before today. So it was strange that he should feel such a strong bond with her.

Sabas did notice that she too referred to them without thinking as if there was a preexisting knowing of each other before today, but he wasn't sure if she did so of her own accord or because he initiated it unconsciously. She was still young and likely still vulnerable to having her thoughts influenced by those around her. She also seemed kind and therefore unlikely to correct him if she thought he spoke out of turn. Whatever was happening, he could feel it taking root in him, increasing his awareness of her, providing a sense of underlying intimacy, a depth of knowing and as it grew, so did his attachment to it, his need for it.

He knew what he sensed was likely entirely a fabrication of his lonely mind, 'too long without a woman,' as Aleeria put it, but his feelings for her were real enough. They'd always been real enough. Even when he saw her only as a child he wanted to look after and then later when she was a woman he wanted to possess as well as protect. Only his Angel of the Night filled his thoughts as often as she had over the years, since she first came to the castle after her family had been murdered; murdered by his kind. No, by William's kind, he corrected himself. He shouldn't blame himself for something he could never have done a thing about. She certainly didn't, he sighed, and that only made her heart more attractive to him.

Sabas had been considering all these things, since he'd lost his temper with her a short while ago, accusing her of spying for the Bloods. The way she had forgiven him so quickly and then not only allowed him to touch her once more, but had sought his permission to touch him, his assurance that he was comfortable with the idea showed a level of respect and consideration that made him feel even more guilty and ashamed of his accusations.

Aleeria noticed that something seemed to be gnawing at Sabas, not unlike her won concerns had gnawed at her earlier. She, likewise waited as he had for him to be ready to speak of it to her, resolved to find a way to soothe his concerns as he had soothed hers.

"Aleeria," he began at last, faltering much as she had. "I want to apologize again for before. I know I am rather rough around the edges. I say things without thinking and I'm not used to trusting anyone or looking out for anyone but myself."

Aleeria thought to contradict him, to remind him that he had looked out for her before but she didn't want to interrupt his momentum. She'd seen the emotions play through his stormy eyes while she'd fed him silently and she knew he'd been struggling mightily with something. She also knew that his preemptive attempts to assuage her concerns had not had the intended effect of making her concerns easier to get out into the open.

"I just want assure you," he continued haltingly, "that I will try to do better by you and that I hope you will help me and try to be patient with me. I would like to be a friend to you, someone you could talk to . . ." His voice trailed off. The words weren't coming out right at all. He cursed inwardly at the decades between the last time he'd said words from his heart and began to wonder if he's ever spoken quite like this before. It certainly had never felt so important before to be heard, to be understood, to be accepted. But here, now with Aleeria, those needs were paramount to his spirit.

Aleeria brushed his cheek with her hand breaking him out of his inner berating, "You haven't had a chance to be better before. I will help you any way I can. I mean that, but I don't mind a few rough edges. They tend to create interesting friction in my limited experience."

Sabas quirked a smile at her. "I could digress into all the possible meaning of that phrase, but I don't want to take away from you intended meaning."

Aleeria leaned to his ear. "I believe that _I_ will be the one to give greater meaning to the phrase interesting friction shortly, my prisoner. Prepare yourself."

Sabas was surprised at how much of his blood was still left to rush down past his ears at her words so sensuously delivered.

Aleeria didn't say much of anything more, she merely suggested they leave the loaf of bread for later and finished feeding them both their lunch. Sabas ate the rest without comment, temporarily too far gone into his daydreams about the reminder of their day together to exchange further banter. Then Aleeria set the tray aside and got out some more of the tools Sabine had left and prepared to clean Sabas's teeth. She had a small brush and a paste made from spearmint leaves, anise seeds, salt, and baking soda.

Aleeria smiled at him. "Now remember, good dogs don't bite the hand that feeds it or the hand that cleans its teeth. Especially if you want to be petted some more afterwards," she added as a teasing warning.

Sabas grinned toothily at her. "I promise not to bite you. Yet. Though, with that in mind, be sure you don't cut your fingers on my teeth. Your Mistress would be most displeased if you were turned accidentally."

Aleeria nodded and began methodically cleaning his teeth. While she brushed away, Aleeria began to eye the buckles along the sides of Sabas's pants speculatively. His clothes were certainly not the sort that would be torn off in an instant, but rather those that encouraged a more lengthy seduction. She had sudden memories of overhearing an older girl in her village speaking about foot washing and wondered if they meant what she was planning. She also found that there was a certain intimacy involved in cleaning the inside of Sabas's mouth.

When Sabas's teeth were clean, Aleeria looked at the floor shyly. "Well we've eaten and you are about as clean as I can get you from the waist up. I guess there's nothing left to do but start taking off your pants."

"I was beginning to think that this moment might never come," he replied, letting out a sound somewhere between a groan and an impatient sigh.

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I know I'm a bit mean stopping here, but otherwise you'd be waiting awhile longer as I figure out the next bits and polished them. More soon. I hope you enjoyed this latest installment. Please read and review.


	6. Soapy Goodness

A/N: Tada! The long awaited chapter. (It's the one I'd be waiting hungrily for as a reader anyway. I mean after all one of the key reasons I want to see more Sabas fic out there is to get those awesome pants off again and again . . .) Also the words in brackets [ ] are the music tracks I listened to while writing if anyone is interested. This chapter is the first half of the end of this round of seduction, but the battle for Aleeria's heart is far from over.

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I just have to say a big thanks to all my reviewers. I am so grateful for the amazing quality, length, thoughtfulness, and intelligence of the reviews here. I have been bad at getting back to you directly, and can't figure out how to track who I actually replied to and who I didn't so, here are my shout outs:

fanficfan84: So thrilled you're enjoying the heat. I hope, this next chapter lives up to the build up, but so much more to come . . . I'm so thrilled that I'm not the only Craig Parker obsessed fan who enjoyed his role in this movie. Honestly, the whole Craig Parker fixation completely snuck up on me. I noticed Sabas in the movie and didn't make the connection until much later, but you know I always seem to notice the hot guy in leather with the smart mouth and wicked sense of inappropriate humor so like my own.

luthien587: Thanks so much for the feedback on the writing. I've really been working hard to hone my storytelling skills. I'm so glad you're enjoying a Sabas story. I thought when I first considered writing it that I'd have like three readers including the one who gave me the idea. I'm so thrilled that I'm not the only one hunting for Sabas stories. I actually have a second one in rough stages.

Taylorxtorniquet: I'm glad his feelings for her don't come across as unrealistic. I'm really enjoying how things are developing as I write more of the story. Aleeria certainly has a mind of her own. I'm really glad you're enjoying the story!

maggie 56: Always pleased to hear you've enjoyed the latest chapter. It makes the time I like to take editing so worth it. I really appreciate your faith in this chapter and I hope it exceeds expectations.

Everyone else: Please keep reading if you're enjoying it. As always, I love to hear what you think.

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**Chapter 6: Soapy Goodness**

[Strictly Physical, Blood & Chocolate Score, Saving Josh by Trevor Morris]

When Sabas's teeth were clean, Aleeria looked at the floor shyly. "Well we've eaten and you are about as clean as I can get you from the waist up. I guess there's nothing left to do but start taking off your pants."

"I was beginning to think that this moment might never come," he replied, letting out a sound somewhere between a groan and an impatient sigh.

"Eager are you?" She teased.

"Aren't you?" He asked teasing her back in an incredulous tone.

"Yes, but I'm nervous too." She giggled uneasily. Aleeria couldn't articulate fully the entire reason she was nervous: she was about to see the only bit of him that she couldn't easily guess at from what she could see of him when she watched Sabas from her tower perch. Still, something about Sabas made her want to tell him all sorts of things she normally wouldn't say aloud, so she tried to explain what she could of her nerves. She took a deep breath, the words rushing out of her like water spurting past a crumbling dam. "I understand theoretically, but I've never seen, and certainly not touched, well except for before, but your pants were on then and they won't be soon, and I'm babbling . . ."

"You're fine Aleeria," Sabas reassured her, smiling tenderly. "There's nothing wrong with being nervous, just try not to be afraid. I won't hurt you." There was something about her being so nervous about touching him of all people that Sabas found heartily endearing.

"I know that," she replied sharply, as if the very thought offended her being. "I'm not afraid and I'm not worried about you hurting me, certainly not while you're all chained up, but I'm about to wash what I assume are sensitive, personal places and I just feel it shouldn't be a casual thing." Aleeria explained, her voice softening.

"Very sensitive, but you don't have to do much more than a cursory cleaning to satisfy your Mistress. I won't tell her if you're not comfortable doing a more thorough cleaning." It cost him something to say it after doing little but think of her stroking his 'sensitive places' for the last few hours. But he wanted it to be a good first experience for her, partially because he wanted to be able to give her that gift and partially so she would be eager to repeat it. It would be so much easier if he were free of his chains, he lamented.

"I'm strangely more concerned that I feel too comfortable with the idea," Aleeria admitted shyly.

Sabas raised his eye brows in pleasurable surprise and gave her a slow, broad smile. "Well then, do be most through."

"I did promise Sabine to be through," Aleeria agreed, grinning. "As long as it's all right with you . . . I mean as long as you still want me to . . . and it would be all right if you didn't . . ." she trailed off.

Sabas began to wonder if she was asking about what he thought she was asking about, which was something along the lines of a 'happy ending" bath. If that's what she was indeed asking, he didn't want this to be about her feeling obligated or like she owed him anything. He wasn't sure yet whether she was asking for her sake or his, but either way, this needed to be about her wanting to for both their sakes.

"Aleeria, I'm sure your Mistress didn't expect you to find such creatively pleasurable methods of cleaning me, thought she could hardly object much, as you've followed her rules. So if you don't want to you don't have to. Whatever you are comfortable with is fine with me, but I don't want you to do anything because you feel obligated to me for saving you all those years ago or anything like that. I don't want you to feel like you have to do more if you're not ready or interested or have any other reservations." Sabas knew he was starting to babble, but it seemed to be disturbingly contagious.

"I won't. I don't." She assured him fervently. "I'm not asking because you saved my life. This is about something else isn't it?"

"I'd like to think so." His voice was low and vulnerable. He could feel so much hanging on her words, her reactions. It was terrifying how swiftly that attachment had come into being.

Aleeria noted that his tone seemed to be as earnest her own. "I don't feel obligated Sabas. I was teasing before. I," her voice faltered. Could she say it? "I want to touch you," her bold, mischievous smile breaking forth at her confession. Her voice became more playful and seductive, "I want to torment you until you find your ease."

"Then by all means, please do." He grinned encouragingly, the fire in his belly sparking at her sudden change in mood.

Aleeria refilled her basin and knelt down by his feet. "You're boots aren't in the way anymore, so it should be easy to remove your pants for cleaning." She ran her hand lightly over his legs. "So many places to touch, but where to start?" She paused long enough for his mind to clearly form a hopeful and unspoken suggestion. "How about your feet?" She giggled a little when Sabas groaned in frustration. She could almost hear his pant laces tightening. "Foot washing was an activity of great significance in my village," Aleeria continued. "As I understand it, you start at the feet and work your way up."

"How foolish of me to doubt your logic," Sabas chuckled. She could be such a tease and gods how he loved it.

She did wash his feet, carefully, scrubbing his toes and scouring the dirt away. Aleeria found he was a bit ticklish. He shifted his feet, trying to keep his bare soles away from her tickling fingers. Recalling suddenly his comment from earlier in the day about being stiff after standing in one place for so many hours, she eyed his legs speculatively. "You must be quite stiff by now, after standing for so long."

Sabas looked her straight in the eye making sure they were both on the same wavelength. "Exceptionally, as well you know after your lunchtime explorations."

Aleeria smiled, her face flush, but her smile daring. "Well then, I suppose it's good that you'll get to stretch out soon when I release you from your confinement."

Sabas could hear her heart thudding in her chest, her scent growing stronger and he felt dizzy with want. "I look forward to it, fair captor. I greatly anticipate the moment you grant me release." He emphasized the last word to be sure she got every nuance of his meaning.

Aleeria nodded, whispering, "Soon my prisoner, soon," before she began to slowly move up his legs, unbuckling his pant straps along the sides as she went. As she moved up past his knees, she could feel his pulse though her fingers as she cleaned up his thighs. Sabas's breath became more ragged and she could feel his heart pounding. It was intoxicating to literally see and feel what she was doing to him and increased her own desire for him tenfold.

Sabas could hear Aleeria's heart racing as well. He could smell her, the way she was as distracted and eager as he was. It was exhilarating, the way the pace of her heart and the strength of her scent increased as she worked her way up his legs, revealing more and more of him to her eyes and fingers. He was nearly shaking with need as she unknowingly teased him nearly beyond his limits.

Aleeria continued to wonder at the strength and solidness of his muscular legs under her hands. She glanced up at him as she began to wash his thighs, alternating between her work and looking into his eyes much as she had when she cleaned his chest. It felt more important now than ever though. She needed to make sure he wanted her to continue to explore him as she had before. Aleeria would have understood if Sabas wanted her to stop as he became more and more exposed to her while he was still bound and for all intents and purposes helpless. She didn't want him to be uncomfortable or unsure. She acknowledged that he might have second thoughts now that they were so close to the critical moment when all was revealed. Maybe he'd decided he didn't want this to happen while he was still bound. Maybe Sabas wanted to wait until they were both unchained. Aleeria had a full hand span's distance between the exposed bit of thigh and the top of his thighs, but she decided that now was as good a time as any to finish removing his pants. She could see the very solid outline of him under the straining leather.

Aleeria paused and moved to his left side and began to undo the final straps of his pants. Sabas was watching her closely, the anticipation clear on his face a wild, desperate gleam in his eyes, perspiration glistening on his skin. She held his eyes, forcing herself not to let them hypnotize her so she could say the thing she needed to say. "Sabas," She began softly. In her moment's pause, she considered a hundred different things: to ask if he wanted her to continue; if her knew what she wanted to do, what she intended, and if he wanted it. Things she'd asked before, but she needed to hear it again anyway. She wanted to find the words to say it plainly and without allusion and hear his assent. She needed him to want it as much as she did or this would feel too much like a violation. However, in the end, she couldn't get all the words she wanted out and so she simply asked, "Are you with me?"

Sabas looked right back at her, drowning in her sea blue eyes. "I'm with you Aleeria. Do as you will."

"Do you will it so as well?" She pressed. She needed to be certain. She knew how his kind were treated, with no choices ever given to them. She would not be like that. She would not presume. It was so important to her that she not be lumped in with his other captors for him. She needed to be certain he saw that he mattered to her.

Sabas forced himself to focus. Was it possible that she didn't understand that he'd been waiting hungrily for hours, for years, for decades for this moment to come? "Aleeria, I do. Of course I do. Please continue, finish your task. I'm in desperate need of _your_ attentions. Please grant me release from torment, even if it is inevitably temporary." He chuckled a little. Yes, any release she granted him would be most temporary as he was already certain he'd never have enough of her.

Something about the way he said 'your' helped her to see through her fear and nerves and she smiled reassuringly at him. "Don't worry. I make it a habit of seeing things through to the end," the hungry, teasing look back in her eyes. "I won't stop until my task is done to _our_ satisfaction."

Something that sounded like a cross between a purr and a growl rumbled from Sabas's chest.

Aleeria undid the straps on his right all the way to his waist, revealing a tantalizing triangle of flesh to her eyes. The way the rest of the leather draped over his erection was both enticing and frustrating for both of them. Then she finished unbuckling his left side. The leather fell to the ground and Aleeria picked the pants up. She used the action of putting them on the table to clean later on as an excuse to step back and admire him. His hardened flesh, now freed at last sprang forward, seeming to quest towards her. Aleeria considered taking the time to clean his pants before cleaning the rest of him, to buy time and try to calm herself, but she couldn't resist anymore.

Sabas watched her face closely. He saw wonder and curiosity, but not fear. He could almost hear the questions forming behind her eyes before she spoke the words aloud.

Aleeria fumbled for the right words to explain her amazement. "Does it always? I mean, wouldn't that make it very uncomfortable to wear pants, pressing you in all the time?"

Sabas chuckled. "No, it doesn't always look like that, so pants are generally comfortable enough."

"Then why . . . ?" She didn't finish the question, she didn't have to. He understood.

"You, fair captor, have bewitched it." Sabas replied with his most beguiling smile, his gaze mesmerizing her.

She somewhat absently put the pants on the table and moved closer. Aleeria knelt before him and began to resume her cleaning. She scrubbed at his inner thighs, tracing all the way up now before going down the other side, his arousal bobbing and brushing against the backs of her hands all the while. Sabas wanted to let her get used to him. He could sense she was nervous and he didn't want to add to it, but he thought he'd die if she didn't touch him soon.

Aleeria washed thoroughly all the flesh around that part of him that quivered for her. It was mere inches from her face as she worked, tempting her. She was certain she'd be afraid or at least more nervous finally face to face with _her_ very naked Lycan's arousal, but it hypnotized her. Aleeria finished washing every other bit of his front, but the part she most wanted to touch, torturing them both. Then she moved her hands closer, the wash cloth in the basin now and watching his face all the while, took him in her hands. Her attention to his expression wasn't wasted. The look of utter pleasure and abandon on Sabas's face was one she would bring to the forefront of her memory often for the rest of her life.

Keeping his eyes open for that fraction of a second before submitting to waves of dizzying pleasure had been worth it. Knowing she seemed to enjoy herself almost as much as he had was its own profound drug. He groaned audibly, his hips thrusting lightly forward, rattling his chains, seeking more of her touch.

Aleeria grinned and looked back at the long column of flesh in her hands. She was surprised at how attractive she found it to be. Long and solid and perfectly formed, just like the rest of him. She ran her fingers over every bit of it, testing, exploring, curious as to what he liked and how it all felt under her fingertips. She picked up the wash cloth and began to wash him thoroughly, but carefully, recalling his words about being sensitive. She noticed that when she slid her cloth up and down its length it seemed to grow bigger and his breathing more erratic. When he was clean, she stopped and went around to wash his backside, to further torment them both.

Sabas was certain he was going to lose his mind now. If her teasing and her touch weren't enough, the look on her face when she held him, the look of wonder and simple pleasure, perhaps even affection made his blood pound all the harder. He could feel her hot breath on his backside now as she scrubbed away, touching, testing. He couldn't help but think of when she had washed his back, the feel of her lips on his skin. He began to imagine her questing fingers replaced by lips and tongue, which only furthered his descent into pleasurable insanity.

When his flesh was clean, she began to soap it up, letting the lather move her hands in smooth strokes over his backside, cupping and stroking, enjoying the solid feel of his ass in her hands, grabbing handfuls of it and listening to him groan. Aleeria slid her hands down between his cheeks and underneath to cup his furless tail and the attached sac of flesh from behind. Sabas nearly leapt out of his skin with the intensity of the sensation, which only encouraged her and made her giggle impishly. Then she returned to enjoying running her hands greedily over the flesh of his most delectable backside. She was so fixated on finally getting to enjoy one of the parts she had greatly anticipated that she was slightly startled when she heard his hoarse voice.

"Aleeria, please," he pleaded roughly. "As much as I am enjoying what you are doing, I beg you, return to finish my front soon, or I will go mad." He shifted his hands in the manacles so he could grip the chains to brace himself.

Aleeria giggled and rinsed off his ass before circling back. She thickly lathered her hands with the soap then began gliding her hands over his thighs and finally taking him in her hands again.

Sabas sighed. "Please," he began, his voice rough. "Stroke it again as you did before."

Aleeria nodded, running her hands up and down his hard length, the soapy lather smoothing out her earlier motions. "Like this?" She asked, eagerly.

Sabas nodded. "Yes," he hissed, "A bit harder. Just like that," he praised as she adjusted her touch to his request. "That's perfect. Please don't stop."

Aleeria nodded. She wanted to give him this, to be able to please him as he seemed so gifted at pleasing her. His breath grew more ragged still as she began to increase her pace, testing at first, to see if he enjoyed it and then more so when she saw that his eyes closed and his head hung back. Impulsively, she again cupped the sack of flesh behind his rigid column, gently massaging it as her other hand continued to stroke up and down.

He hadn't been touched by a woman in so many decades and her hands felt so wonderful, he knew he wouldn't last much longer. "Aleeria," he began in low, rough tones. "Wait." The word pained him, but it had to be said. She wouldn't know. "Aleeria. If you continue to do what you are doing, things are going to get rather messy."

"Do you want me to stop?" She asked, looking up at his with a sort of innocent concern that nearly did him in.

"No," he replied, his voice insistent. "But you should not be in front of me when it happens."

"Would I be in danger?" Aleeria asked with a mixture of curiosity and amusement.

Sabas chuckled. "Not physical danger, but your dress might get messy for example and that would give these explorations away. If you want to continue, you should stand to the side and use the cloth."

"Do you want me to continue then?" She asked softly, coyly, her eyes large. All her previous concerns long gone, lost to the obvious pleasure in his tones and movements. She could be blind and she'd know he wanted this moment as much as she did.

"Oh yes, very much." He breathed, flexing his grip on the chains.

"Then your wish is my command." Aleeria whispered lightly into his ear before crouching back to her work, eliciting another low, rough groan. She lathered more soap onto the cloth. Then she resumed her motions, moving faster and harder as he had requested, alternating between watching his face as she pleasured him and watching his length sliding in and out of the soapy cloth in her hand. She used her other hand to steady herself as she pressed herself closer to his bare leg, half wrapping herself around it, yet standing clear of his front just as he had asked.

She was so close to him, so close to where he wanted her most. He could feel the shape and softness of her linen covered breasts pressed into the side of his thigh. He could smell her scent, enveloping him, letting him know that she was just as ready as he was, spiraling his pleasure higher still. Then suddenly he shuddered, arching against the chains, pushing himself further into her hands a long low, moan rushing out of him. Surprised by his reaction, she paused her motions, sliding her palm up the length to cup the tip and held him until he went still.

Sabas seemed so vulnerable, so exposed, more so than any moment before, his body slumped against the chains, all fight and tension gone from him, his head bowed, eyes closed, utterly lost in pleasurable sensation. Aleeria felt moved beyond her ability to consider her next action, stood, her hand still holding the cloth over the tip of him, and tilted her head to kiss him gently on the lips at the same time.

Sabas was half aware at first, thinking perhaps he only dreamed it, that Aleeria held his sated length and kissed him. Then awareness returned and all he knew was the feeling of her lips gently touching, exploring his own. He came alive under her contact and kissed her back, forcing himself to be gentle even as he felt her reawaken a darker hunger. He had a nagging suspicion that she'd somehow slipped inside his armor in a much more profound way in that instant. When she finally pulled away, he looked at her with that awed expression she was getting to know well. "That's a first kiss that I won't forget," he breathed huskily.

Aleeria smiled weakly and moved around behind him, needing to stay close, but also to pause a moment and absorb. She leaned her forehead in the middle of his back expecting it to be soothing and cool, but it felt feverish like the rest of her. What was happening in this room that was dropping their defenses so swiftly? That was enabling them to share so much of themselves, so easily? Were they both just that desperate for it and in the unexpected situation of being left alone together, a sort of captive and receptive audience?

Aleeria still held him in her hand, her fingers sliding back down to the base without realizing it as she moved behind him. Because she wasn't ready to let him go yet, she simply wrapped her other arm around his other side and held onto him. "It was more overwhelming than I thought it would be. I understand how you felt: needing to explode. I feel quite that way myself."

Sabas made a sound in his throat. "I wish I could-," his voice broke off.

"It's all right," She interrupted swiftly. She couldn't bear listening to him finish that sentence. To hear him say aloud what could not be for now would only make the desperate needs within her that much more unbearable. "You will one day I'm sure. Sabine can't keep you here forever." Aleeria said it to reassure herself, her aching, tormented body as much as to reassure Sabas.

"If she does, you'd better keep practicing your torture techniques with me," He sighed, every syllable saturated with male satisfaction. "It's all I'll think about anyway from now on. I don't think I'll ever be chained up again without thinking about this."

Aleeria blushed. Then her thoughts unwillingly shifted to the practical. "You can't hear anyone coming can you?"

Sabas chuckled. "I'm not sure I can hear much of anything at all." He could feel her stiffen against him as panic slid into her. "Sorry, I was only joking. This about the point someone usually starts coming down the hall isn't it, but it seems we have a bit of a reprieve."

"Thank goodness for small miracles." Aleeria sighed, laughing lightly. "I didn't even think to worry about it until now. I suppose I was just too focused on my 'task' to worry." More than that, she knew, she hadn't worried about someone coming because she had wanted to touch Sabas so much that she'd been able to trust that Sabas would hear someone coming as he had before and that Lucian would buy them time if need be. It was a rare thing for her to put her trust entirely in someone else's hands when it concerned her welfare.

He grinned a little weakly still. "When I told you I could make you forget more than the walls of this room, I was thinking it would be because of what I did to you, not the other way around."

"Hmm," was all Alleria could say in response. She didn't want to spur her own needs on any further. She was beginning to feel like she was the one in chains instead, enslaved to a desperate need for _her_ Lycan. Besides, she could hardly articulate that pleasing him had done quite a deal to her. Touching him and seeing and feeling his reactions to her aroused her as potently as his actual touch. She took a deep, shuddering breath to steady herself; no point thinking about it too much at the moment. She reluctantly released her holds on him and stepped away from his back, circling to face him.

"I suppose I should, ah, clean the rest of the soap off so you can dry." She picked up the cloth she'd used on him off the floor and opened it curiously to find a milky substance within that was sticky to the touch. "Yes, this would have been quite difficult to get off my dress I imagine." She giggled.

"You should burn the cloth just in case," Sabas advised.

Aleeria nodded walking over to the fire, "Seems wasteful somehow, but I suppose that is the safest plan. We can't have Sabine making you into a rug."

Her touch had been so exquisitely pleasurable. He needed to find some way to repay her, to give her release in kind. Sabas could smell how much she wanted it, needed it and yet she conspicuously was barely speaking of it. He wondered if she was not speaking of her need to spare his feelings. Perhaps Aleeria understood how it bothered him to be unable to touch her as she had touched him until she quivered and quaked and cried out.

Unaware, of Sabas's thoughts, Aleeria picked up a fresh cloth and wet it before starting to clean his legs one at a time. Then gently, reverently, she cleaned off his gradually shrinking length. Aleeria looked up at him, feeling his limbs tense and saw him avert his eyes. To her utter astonishment, she saw what looked a bit like a blush creep across his face. "Sabas, are you all right?"

He smiled sheepishly. "Yes, it's just I'm not accustomed to being seen at this particular moment with such bare scrutiny."

Aleeria looked up at him confused. "What do you mean?"

"It is one thing for you to watch my, ah, furless tail while it is eager and excited, but quite another to have you tend to it while it is . . . falling asleep," he faltered and much as her nervousness had enchanted him, Aleeria felt drawn again to his apparent vulnerability. It contrasted so sharply with the sheer strength and near indestructibility of what he was.

She finished wiping him clean and stood, cupping his face with her hand. "Nonsense. You have no reason to feel embarrassed with me. Though I do understand better how you can bear to wear pants when your furless tail is not quite so bewitched." They laughed gently and she kissed his cheek. "Well, you're all cleaned. I guess I should get to cleaning your pants so they can dry. I should have done it before, but I was far too distracted." She smiled wickedly against his skin and he could feel her mouth curve.

"I'd be happy to distract you again," Sabas offered as she moved back to the table covered with supplies.

"I'm counting on it," she replied saucily.

Aleeria pulled a heavy wool blanket off the pile and draped it over his shoulder so that it covered most of him and she hunted up a bit of rope and tied the blanket around his middle like a belt to keep it covered.

Sabas chuckled. "What are you up to? Trying to spare my modesty?"

Aleeria shot him a cheeky grin. "I don't want anyone else to see you this way, but me. I am apparently rather possessive of my prisoner."

"I suppose I can understand that. I'd hate to think of you tormenting another the way you torment me," he replied, with a gruff edge to his voice.

The almost growl of his voice sent pleasant shivers over her skin. To be possessed by _her_ Lycan and to possess him in return would be powerful indeed. "Besides, I have work to finish and I can't have your nakedness distracting me further and interrupting my duties." She scolded in a mirthful tone.

Sabas grinned back at her. "Speaking of interruptions, Lucian is on his way."

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A/N: More to come, much more apparently. (You know those plot tribbles and their breeding habits, they're born pregnant.) I hope this chapter was worth the build up and the wait.


	7. Erika

**luthien587**: I have to say, I really appreciated your very thoughtful and very detailed review. Thank you so much! It's wonderful hearing that others are enjoying the story the way I hoped. It's one thing to write a story and love it yourself and it's another for those you share it with to feel what you felt, and see and experience it as you did when you wrote it. To have both is spectacular. I'm still amazed at how the story is continuing. I thought the last chapter would be the end more or less, but there's so much more to tell. I'm enjoying the characters far too much to not continue. This chapter is going to start expanding the story outside the safety of that little room and soon the chains will have to come off. I plan to keep addressing my reviewers personally before each chapter as long as I can because if each of you can take the time to give me your thoughts I can do the same.

**maggie 56**: So thrilled you loved the description. I really agonized over the right word choice for Chapters 6 & 7. I'm so thrilled that you felt like the wait was worth it. I have so much more in store for those two.

**fanficfan84:** You're gonna laugh, but Darken Rahl's actually the role that pushed me over the edge. Something about Craig Parker with long hair and those predatory movements and the penetrating gaze that just completely took over my brain. It was a moment where I could almost hear the line, "Resistance is futile." I also loved him in this little watched show called Diplomatic Immunity. You can see two of the best episodes on YouTube.

**Taylorxtorniquet:** Your review totally made my night! I love how much you're enjoying it and it's such a thrill to hear someone else enjoyed it as much as I did. I'm so glad that you enjoy the detail. It's something I always really appreciate in other people's stories. It's so frustrating to me when people have great characters, great plot, but they rush the story. I look forward to hearing how you like their relationship as the story continues to develop.

a/n: This chapter is the first one to start expanding the story far beyond its original plan. I hope you enjoy. Two more chapters or so until the chains come off, but you'll have to decide then whether the chains are providing a comfort zone or a restriction for their relationship. Also in the movies in case you are unaware, until Underworld Evolutions, everyone save Tanis believes Viktor to be the first vampire, when in fact Marcus is the first and Viktor, his first creation.

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**Chapter 7: Erika**

[Vivian Wounded/ The Kiss- Elektra/ Saving Josh by Trevor Morris/Beautiful Disaster/Eternity and a Day]

Sabas grinned back at her. "Speaking of interruptions, Lucian is on his way."

Aleeria sighed heavily and moved back to the leather pants on the table to work at cleaning them until their visitor arrived. She didn't have to wait long. A few minutes later, two swift and reluctant knocks sounded. Aleeria went to the door and opened it.

"What can I help you with Lucian?" Aleeria asked.

"Erika needs to speak with you. She has a message from Sabine, but insisted you come out to speak with her in the courtyard." Lucian explained, rolling his eyes. "She seems to be under the misguided impression that if she were to come down here herself, she would fall prey to Lycan appetites."

Aleeria rolled her own eyes in kind. "Well she is less favored than I. It would probably be less objectionable to most if you happened to eat her." Aleeria joked. "I'll go see what she wants. It's probably better this way anyhow. I wouldn't want her negativity to sully the room." She turned to Sabas. "I'm sorry. I'll be back as soon as I can."

Lucian nodded towards Sabas, noting his new woolen makeshift tunic.

Once out in the hallway, Aleeria didn't say much. She wasn't really in the mood for Erika at the moment. Erika had decidedly negative feelings towards Lycans. In fact, Erika's opinions on the subject were the exact opposite of Aleeria's and in light of the day she was having, Aleeria had no patience for it, even less than usual.

"I'm sorry," Lucian murmured, interrupting Aleeria's dark musings. "I hope my timing wasn't bad."

Aleeria smiled at him, understanding the underlying question. "Not at all. I was just preparing to finish cleaning Sabas' clothes. Of course, spending time with Erika at the moment is hardly high on my list of things I'd rather be doing."

They both exchanged a look and chuckled.

Lucian slanted her a look, debating whether or not to comment on his friend's unusual attire. "I find it interesting that a human raised by vampires for most of her life would feel the need to cover a naked Lycan while you wash his clothes."

Aleeria stopped walking and glanced around. She chose her words carefully. "Just because some people that I associate with can't see the value of treating others decently doesn't mean I share that view."

Lucian nodded. "True. I suppose I am surprised that you feelings extend to a Lycan you barely know."

Aleeria looked away. "That's not true in this case as I do know him, though I would be courteous and respectful of anyone under my care. Sabas saved my life many years ago. He's no stranger."

Certainly not now, Lucian thought to himself, smiling. "So you did recognize him. I'd wondered if you'd remember."

Aleeria met his eyes shrewdly, "I see, so you were testing me. Yes, I remember. I've never forgotten."

"I imagine you know that the cold will not affect him." Lucian continued.

"I'm not covering him because of the cold," Aleeria interrupted. "Or my own modesty," she added before he could suggest otherwise. "I just didn't feel that anyone walking into that room needed to see him naked when there's nothing he could do about it."

Lucian raised an eyebrow, but didn't press the matter further. Clearly, she cared about Sabas, enough to feel protective, enough to feel concern for his well-being and sense of self and to insist on affording him a significant level of respect. That Aleeria claimed she would have done the same for any of the Lycans was remarkable in itself, but the fact that she did so for Sabas was at the least suggestive of a deeper level of attachment. Very interesting indeed.

Lucian escorted Aleeria to the doorway of an enclosed courtyard, made sure it was safe and then closed the door, promising to wait nearby to take her back to the interrogation room when she was finished.

Aleeria glanced around the courtyard finding Erika, a petite, stunning, blond girl with skin nearly as pale as a vampire's sitting on bench drenched in sunlight on the opposite side of the yard.

"Aleeria," She sighed with relief. "Thank you for speaking with me out here. You know how Lycans make me nervous," She began breathlessly. "I have a message from Lady Sabine."

Erika, another servant girl in the castle who had survived for a surprisingly long time was the closest things Aleeria had to a girl friend, even though they had very different views on many things, particularly Lycans. Erika thought of them as no better than oxen, dangerous, beastly oxen; beasts of burden that were unintelligent and unimportant. It was the vampires she desired, particularly Kraven, one of the Death Dealers.

Erika's appearance was the sort that could make any woman feel inadequate. Aleeria was no exception. Erika often made Aleeria feel small and unimportant. She was fine-boned, lithe, graceful, and curvy in all the right places with hair pale as winter sunlight, skin like alabaster and eyes blue as ice: the vampire ideal. In sharp contrast to Aleeria with her Mediterranean build and coloring who was more muscular, more curvy, dark haired and tan skinned from watching the Lycans for hours of daylight while Erika got her beauty sleep.

When Erika was around, vampires always noticed. It was only a matter of time before she was changed or killed. It was a fact that cemented their unlikely friendship. Aleeria was always protected as Sabine's favorite whereas Erika, who served Viktor's House in a less prominent way, was not. Aleeria knew that by spending time with her, Erika extended her own life. For Aleeria, there was also some comfort in being companionable with someone who had a similar lot in life, shared similar dangers and had lived in the castle nearly as long. Additionally, Aleeria felt a compulsion to protect those in need of it and deserving of it. Whatever Erika's failings, she was more vulnerable to danger than Aleeira because of her preferences for Death Dealers and she was not an evil person, so Aleeria wanted to offer what little protection she could when it was possible. Still, Aleeria never allowed Erika to come into her tower where she watched the Lycans. That time and place were sacred ground and Erika was not welcome there, not only because she wouldn't appreciate it, but also because Erika's feelings towards Lycans would only pollute Aleeria's sanctuary and she'd have none of that. Aleeria did enjoy watching the Death Dealers well enough to keep up her ruse of a personal interest in one of them, Kahn, without much fabrication on her part.

What Aleeria didn't know, was that Erika was jealous of Aleeria's long dark hair, golden coppery skin, and large intense eyes that changed color from grey to green to blue, not to mention and the position of favor she held with Marcus's house, a vampire elder. Erika also enjoyed the safety and elevated status and privileges that being in Aleeria's company afforded her. In her mind, one could never have enough allies, especially when one of them was someone as well-placed as Aleeria. Just as Aleeria knew it was only a matter of time before Erika was turned or killed, Erika certain it was only a matter of time, before Sabine made Aleeira a permanent member of her own household and Erika hoped that Aleeira would turn her if Erika couldn't manage to have one of the Death Dealers turn her sooner. Furthermore, Erika hoped that Aleeria would help Erika increase her own position in the house, perhaps making Erika part of her retinue if Sabine adopted Aleeria as part of the House of Marcus as it seemed likely she would.

She was thrilled to be given work by Sabine. It was such an honor for her to serve the House of Marcus and the wife of his son no less. Erika wished for the thousandth time that Viktor had more children or an interest to take a new consort. Viktor was the oldest vampire as far as any of them knew the first and therefore to serve his house theoretically would hold more prestige, if his daughter would allow her to fill the same role that Aleeira filled for Sabine as her handmaiden. For some reason, Sonja, Viktor's daughter, never seemed to be interested in her help. Still, serving in an upper level position in Marcus's House, one of the three Elders, would be nearly as good and in spite of all her efforts to the contrary, it was the best Erika could seem to do for herself.

In spite of their extreme differences of opinion that Erika was entirely ignorant of, both women had their own reasons for continuing the connection. If Aleeira was honest with herself, a good part of her friendship with Erika was a way to control Erika's gossiping tongue and what it said about her and the things that mattered to her, as well as a way to learn about the inner workings of the palace life and politics beyond what Sabine shared with her. Lucian had his sources and Aleeria had hers. Erika, meanwhile, enjoyed having another woman to share gossip with and her own adventures and intrigues with various members of the Death Dealers.

"The Lady Sabine gave me something to give to you," Erika explained, handing Aleeria a large basket. "She said that after a full day bathing a filthy Lycan, you should bathe yourself and scrub out the room before calling her to inspect your work. She suggested you use whatever is left in the tub by the fire to clean the room when you're done with that one," Erika jerked her hand in the vague direction of the interrogation room. "Then that other Lycan that brought you here would bring you fresh water to warm and wash yourself with. Apparently, she doesn't want you to track the filth and stench of the Lycans into her home. I can't blame her there. Still, I do hope there's a privacy screen in the room you're working in. How horrible it would be to have to bathe with the beast leering at you the whole time." She said all this quite fast.

Aleeria could feel her temper rising. She'd heard Erika speaking of Lycans like this before plenty of times, but to hear her do so now, after what she'd just shared with Sabas, she had never been so close to slapping Erika silly. Instead, Aleeria took the basket Erika held and giving herself time to hide her emotions while she looked through the contents. Keeping her tone as neutral as possible, Aleeria replied, "I imagine that Lady Sabine doesn't want any trace of unclean scent in such an enclosed space when she returns to inspect my work either."

Erika naturally assumed the fury sparking in Aleeria's eyes was because of Sabine's message and not the way Erika spoke of Lycans in general, and therefore, just as naturally, Erika misinterpreted the reason behind Aleeria's anger. "I imagine you're right." Erika agreed. "I'd be furious to at the very idea of having to bathe one, much less bathe in front of one. Ugh, the very idea of having to touch one enough to clean it . . . What are you doing cleaning Lycans all day anyhow? Are you being punished?" She said the last bit with her voice quite low.

Aleeria sighed heavily. "Hardly, Lady Sabine just knew I would give the task full attention to detail. As you said, my Mistress doesn't want her House's new daylight guardian to stink of mud and excrement. He is to have a status equal to that of Lucian." Aleeria replied with a bit of pride. "He'll be keeping us safe while we sleep."

Erika sighed. "I suppose the more protection we have between us and the wild Lycans, the better.

Erika, nosy by nature looked through as well over Aleeria's shoulder. There was a fresh set of clothes, a thick, soft bath robe, her hair brush, and a creamy bar of lavender scented soap within. "You get all the best things." She pouted. "I only get such things with a good bit of finagling and wiles."

"Speaking of your wiles," Aleeria began, desperate for a change in topic. "I assume using them on one of your latest conquests is why you are here hours after Sabine went to sleep."

A vixenous grin broke out across Erika's face. "Yes," She admitted wantonly. "Coram, one of the Death Dealers."

"And what does Kraven think about that?" Aleeria asked, feigning sly interest.

Erika rolled her eyes. "Kraven still keeps his distance from me for the most part. Coram, on the other hand, was more than happy to while away a few hours with me before heading to sleep. Speaking of whom, I need to head out and get some sleep so I can be awake when Kraven heads out on patrol." Erika went on. She loved to watch the comings and goings of the Death Dealers.

Aleeria nodded. "Keep an eye out for Kahn for me," Aleeria replied. "I'm sure I won't make watching them go out tonight." She'd realized long ago that she could never reveal her fondness for _her_ Lycan to Erika, so she'd made up a fascination with one of the Death Dealers. Kahn was a decent sort, attractive enough and was held in high esteem by Marcus and Sabine. He was also far too classy to ever submit to Erika's wiles which did make him more appealing to Aleeria. Still, Kahn was not the one her heart longed for.

Erika promised to tell Aleeria everything she observed later that evening and left the courtyard through a doorway opposite to the one Aleeria had used.

When she was gone, Aleeria let out a sigh of relief and frustration, not wanting to see Lucian or head back to Sabas yet. She was so angry and embarrassed. She pounded her fists into her pile of clean clothes in her basket, and then buried her head into them, screaming. When she'd gotten it out of her system, she stood back up and took several deep breaths calming herself.

Lucian opened the door and came in swiftly, looking concerned and scanning the courtyard for danger. "Are you all right? I thought I heard screaming."

Aleeria shook her head. "Sorry about that. I was just venting some frustration over Erika." She took a few more deep breaths and then looked over at Lucian feeling suddenly more embarrassed, not wanting Lucian to think ill of her. He was a Lycan after all and Sabas was his friend. "Did you hear any of that?"

Lucian shrugged. "Enough, but nothing I haven't heard before and certainly nothing you haven't heard before."

"I know, but I have less patience for it today." Aleeria replied in a defeated tone. A horrible thought occurred to her, and she turned to Lucian with pleading eyes. "Please don't tell Sabas what she said. I'm sure he'd think badly of me knowing I am companionable with her even knowing she feels the way she does about Lycans."

"I won't tell him," Lucian promised.

"At least she wanted to meet out here, far from Sabas." Aleeria murmured gratefully. "I'd be so ashamed for him to hear her speak that way and hear me just listen and respond as if I agreed with her."

"Aleeira," Lucian began, stepping towards her. "I know you don't think that way. You and I both know how dangerous it would be for Erika to know that about you. Sabas would understand. He would want you to do what is necessary to stay safe."

"Even at the sacrifice of my integrity?"

"Do you think we Lycans don't have to sacrifice pieces of ourselves to survive here? We do what we have to in order to survive. In a way, that's what Erika's doing too."

Aleeria shook her head. "I still don't want him to know what she said. No one should listen to that toxic nonsense. I wouldn't even be friends with her if we didn't share so much of the same dangers being mortals in this place. It's safer for us to be friends, but the things she says sometimes . . . Come on. I should get back. Her visit did offer some redeeming information." She replied a little brighter, thinking about the bath Sabine ordered her to take in the interrogation room . . . where Sabas would see her.

Lucian smiled roguishly thinking that Sabas would certainly enjoy the bit of Erika's message he would get to hear. He shook his head ruefully. Some Lycans had all the luck. What he wouldn't give to have an entire day with nothing to do but be bathed and pleasured by his beloved Sonja. Though, unless he missed his guess, Aleeria and Sabas were not nearly as far into their physical relationship as he and Sonja. Lucian didn't think that would last long though the way those two were looking at each other. Still, he was concerned. As Aleeria's sometimes protector, he was well aware of Sabine's orders toward Aleeria. If Sabine were to catch on to their chemistry as she was bound to, the consequences could be severe. Still, he'd warned her and Sabas knew all too well the consequences he was tempting. Lucian hoped that would be enough.

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A/N: Sorry this chapter's a bit short, but I was pressed for time with one of my best friends coming into town. I've got a bunch more in the works. But Chapter 9 is going real slow. Wish me muses and blocks of time.


	8. Vulnerability

A/N: and I thought the last chapter might not get as many reviews because it didn't have as much Sabas as the more recent chapters. Silly me. I have the best reviewers ever! You all seriously are the highlight of my weeks! I tell my friends how awesome you all are all the time.

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**fanficfan84:** Your review still makes me smile every time I read it. It made my weekend. It's one thing when your friends love your work or your family, but somehow when other writers or dedicated readers, people while no obligation to support you and lift you up see something amazing in your work, it strikes a deeper chord of truth. LOL, My husband told me I should have these stories read and podcast like books on tape. Only one more chapter before the chains come off.

I'm thrilled that you're enjoying my portrayal of Erika and Sabas. Capturing peripheral characters is tricky. You don't want them to act out of character, but there isn't as much character time to study. I confess I choose Sabas because he has the predatory qualities that I enjoy in Rahl, but not so many homicidal tendencies. As for Erika, I am a huge moonlight fan (Beth is played by the same actress who played Erika) and so I'm considering giving Erika more of a role as time goes on. She's a great character I'd like to see *gasp* grow a little.

**Taylorxtorniquet:** Ah poor Lucian. He certainly knows all about secret love. Erika's a shrewd creature. We'll have to see what mischief she gets up to. I confess: I really enjoy Aleeria's gumption. She's such a fun character to write. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter.

**vampiresuperstar**: Welcome to the story. I make a point to thank my reviewers when I post new chapters because you took the time to tell me you enjoyed my work and so I want to take the time to let you know how much I appreciate the feedback.

**Soaring hawk:** I swear your wish hit this morning. I thought it was going to be another week before I posted this chapter, but the muses were with me and here is the wonderful result. I hope this one sets your weekend off on the right foot. It's so awesome to know how much you're enjoying the story as it continues to unfold.

**luthien587**: Thank you for both you messages. The world needs great and thoughtful readers. They make the process of writing rewarding beyond its own sake. I'm grateful for your thoughtful and detailed reviewing skills. You helped me know that my story was doing and conveying all the things I wanted it to. I've been working really hard to create a story with rich depth and background without overwhelming the story with wordiness. It's nice to know that's working out. I'm also cheered that so many of you thought the interaction with Erika and Aleeria went so well because their relationship is really complex. They have this weird symbiotic relationship where they depend on each other and look after each other even though Erika is mostly worried about helping herself and Aleeira's half of the friendship is based on well-constructed lies.

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a/n: ok I know in Rise of the Lycans, Raze is changed much later in the story, but I am pretty much ignoring that movie all together except to pull characters, societal structure and current events like issues with William's Lycans.

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**Chapter 8: Vulnerability**

[Vivian Wounded/ The Kiss- Elektra/ Saving Josh by Trevor Morris/Beautiful Disaster/Eternity and a Day/The Gift of a Thistle/Eptesicus]

In Aleeria's absence, Sabas recovered himself half asleep, half listening intently for the light, sure footfalls that would signal her return. He rolled Aleeria's conversation with Lucian before she left the room over in his head. He wondered what Aleeria meant about not wanting Erika to deliver her message in the interrogation room, wondering if Aleeria felt ashamed of him in some way. The idea bothered him more than he liked.

To distract himself, Sabas turned his thoughts to recalling Aleeria's touch. She certainly was creative at finding ways to please them both under the inhibiting circumstances, not to mention intuitively talented, eager to learn more, and for now at least, all his. He wondered what other imaginative and pleasurable ideas she might have once they were both free to do as they pleased. But more than that, Sabas enjoyed talking with her, spending time with her, the way her presence warmed the room. The Lycan who won her for himself would be fortunate indeed. When Aleeria left the room at the end of their day, Sabas wanted to be sure that she hungered for no other, that her thoughts would be filled only with him because he knew that's how it would be for him. He would dream of little else but earning her for himself. If anyone could make an eternity of servitude enjoyable, Aleeria could. But for the short term, no matter how difficult it was given his state of immobility, Sabas wanted to find a way to make her scream her pleasure for him.

* * *

All the way back to the room, Aleeria had to hold herself back from running. Since the moment she'd left the enclosed stone room, all she'd wanted to do was return and her conversation with Erika had only increased that desire tenfold. Not only because she was excited by the salient points of Erika's message, but also because talking to Erika brought back too much awareness of how lonely Aleeria's world was day in and day out. Erika was a paradox in her reality. Though Aleeira spent a great deal of time talking with, or more often listening to Erika, Aleeria felt alone often even while they spoke. Alone with only her dreams of _her_ Lycan to keep her company day after day, with no one to share her thoughts or feelings with without having to censor them or lie. She'd never had an entirely honest conversation with Erika and she didn't see that changing anytime soon. She hadn't realized until now how much she craved the connection that was denied her at every turn, except with Sabas. She wanted to put as much distance between herself and that reality. She wanted to escape back into that interrogation room with Sabas and enjoy being truly present and genuine for just a little while longer.

For years, her only interaction with _her_ Lycan had been to watch him from afar. Now that she'd enjoyed his company in person, she wasn't sure how she could ever go back to her world of dreams and pretending. She would no longer be satisfied to sit high in her tower, day dreaming how things could be, now that she knew how they were. Aleeria wanted to throw herself into his arms as soon as she returned to his company and have him hold her and comfort her and tell her it would all be fine, the way he always did in her mind for so many years when she imagined how it would be if she was with him. But Sabas couldn't hold her because his arms and legs were bound securely in chains and that simple fact brought her rocketing back again to the reality of not only the temporary nature of their circumstance, but also the limitations and all the frustrations that went with it.

But, Aleeria reminded herself. If we both want it enough and try enough, I can have him in the end, and that's a possibility I didn't have yesterday. These chains aren't forever, but we can be if he wants it to be so as much as I do.

When Aleeria came back into the room, she thought she saw Saba's eyes light up, but it could have been a trick of the blazing fire across the room. Either way, she found heat spread over her skin when she saw him. "Sorry that took some time, Erika takes time to handle properly."

"How so?" He asked casually.

She took a deep breath, considering what to tell him, considering how much she could say without letting him hear anything insulting, anything that could hurt him. He'd been hurt plenty on the outside and she couldn't protect him from that happening again in the future, but maybe protecting what was inside him was something she could do. Maybe protecting his heart was how she could protect him the way she'd always wanted to, the way he'd protected her body and the way her dreams of him had protected her heart. "Erika and share a similar position in the palace as two of the longest lived mortal females and that bonds us, but our views on our world here are vastly different. She also is a dreadful gossip. That's why she would not meet me here and why I had to take enough time with her that she didn't think I was eager to return to my task of bathing you," Aleeria explained at length. "It would be very dangerous for us both if she were to intuit the truth."

Sabas nodded grimly. He'd caught what she said about being eager to return to him, but it was overshadowed by another observation: she was holding something back from him. He could see that clearly and it was the first time she'd held anything back since they'd started exchanging pieces of themselves. He felt tension grow into a lead weight in his belly. "I heard Lucian's comment before you left about her concerns regarding being in a room with two Lycans. Isn't your well-being assurance enough?"

Aleeria forced a laugh. There was nothing funny about it, but she needed to pretend it was a lighter matter than it was if only for the moment. "Hardly, her concerns are as much about the appearance of her being alone in a room with two Lycans and naught but my word that she was untouched. She has high aspirations of being a Death Dealer's wife one day and she will do nothing to jeopardize that."

"I see," Sabas replied neutrally. He understood what was unsaid there. A Death Dealer would never take a woman who'd been with a Lycan, at least not as a lover, but as a meaningless, disposable plaything was another matter altogether. Still he could feel the weight of whatever she held back from him, so he dared ask the question that carved like knives in the back of his throat. "What about your own aspirations?"

Aleeria blushed. "I do not share Erika's dreams if that's what you're asking." She stepped closer to him. "I was anxious to return, but it was safer for me to make sure she left first and thinking otherwise."

Sabas felt the lead ball of tension in his belly dissolved somewhat. He'd been worried when she first spoke that perhaps once she was out of the room, and among others who felt less than charitable towards Lycans, she might feel less appreciative of their time together. Her words eased that worry, but still, she seemed different somehow. He pushed it aside. She was back here with him now and that was what counted. He'd coax her back into her former mood soon enough.

Aleeria could see Sabas was distracted. His eyes and were troubled, his shoulders more slumped, and she wanted desperately to ease it away. She didn't want him to feel that way here, now with her. He had so many causes to feel it outside the room that she wanted to shelter him from that for a little longer, no matter how foolish a sentiment it was. It was just another way for her to protect his heart, by giving it a safe refuge, a place to forget the things that haunted his eyes and flesh. "Sabas, do you want to know why I was anxious to return?" She whispered into his ear.

He blinked hard at her. When had she come so close to him? He could feel the heat from her body so near to him now he could taste the air around her. "When you present the matter in that tone, I am riveted."

She began to stroke the side of his face and the wool blanket she'd draped over his body where it covered his chest. "Sabine's message instructed me that my cleaning task is not complete. I am to scrub down the room and then to bathe myself before dressing you and making you presentable for her inspection." Aleeria waited, delighted when she saw the spark of understanding fill his eyes.

"Sabine said you were to take a bath . . . in here . . . with me?" He replied in halting awe.

Aleeria giggled. "Yes. My somewhat lengthy visit with Erika ultimately gave us more time together. I thought I was going to be leaving your company soon to fetch my Mistress to inspect you, but instead, I find that I have a long list of things to do before that time comes. I have to clean your pants, clean the room, and then . . . clean myself in the tub by the fire. That will all take hours. You won't be able to bathe me yourself, but you'll get to watch." She drew out her words, watching his eyes grow hungry again. She swore she saw his nostrils flare for a moment, like a wolf on the hunt. "I'm going to get started on your pants first." She turned swiftly, and moved towards the table her hips swaying flirtatiously before glancing back at him over her shoulder playfully.

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Sabas's mood had calmed under her touch and let her caresses transport his thoughts back to reminiscing about their time together before Erika had arrived, which led pleasantly to thoughts of Aleeria's forthcoming bath. As she moved away from him again, he began to plot and ponder if there was a way that she could take her bath while following her Mistresses wishes and still enable Sabas to repay sweet Aleeria for her devoted attention to him. Well, he had time enough to ponder while she cleaned his pants and the room.

"Aleeria, I'm going to take a cat nap for a little bit," Sabas called to her.

"Has all this torture worn you out my prisoner?" She teased him. Aleeria laid the pants out on the large table and began to clean them off with a coarse bristled brush.

"Indeed it has fair captor. I must recover my strength." Sabas chuckled. "But please don't hesitate to wake me if you need me."

I always need you, she thought. "Of course. Sleep well. I'll try not to wake you." Aleeria watched his eyes close and then refocused her attention on her work.

Sabas felt badly lying to her, even a white lie, but feigning a nap would give him time to plan. He'd make their brief period of leaving her alone with her work worth her while. He'd make good use of this unexpected boon from Sabine. He had to make it count because who knew what would happen when the day was over. He had to make himself stand out in her mind whether he saw her every day or not.

He briefly considered the images of Aleeria wet and standing within reach of his mouth on one of the benches for him to enjoy her without the linen barrier of her dress and shift in the way, but the image, however pleasing it might be, did not stand up to practicalities. He certainly didn't want her to lose her balance and fall and if someone interrupted them, as seemed to happen so often. Furthermore, there was no way to explain her standing naked on a bench before him except for the obvious truth. So, he started over. After allowing himself several lovely fantasies about Aleeria slowly stripping for him in front of the fire, another idea began to form in his mind. Sabas recalled how uncertain and unconvinced Aleeria seemed about his attraction to her. Since he could not show her the things he wanted to do to her if he was unrestrained, he could tell her and let the thing take its course.

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Aleeria was glad for the manual labor to distract her. Her conversation with Erika had disrupted her mood more than she'd allowed herself to acknowledge. Or perhaps she had acknowledged it, but she had thought, perhaps foolishly, that she would come back to this room and see Sabas and that feeling that had been there when she left would return and rinse away all the residue of her conversation with Erika from her heart. Instead, Erika's presence had burst the spell cast in the room between them like a soap bubble striking briars. The work of scrubbing the floor made Aleeria fell calm again, centered. She hoped Sabas hadn't noticed her changed mood.

She made quick work of the pants, cleaning them, and then massaging saddle soap into them, softening the leather, repairing the places that had been damaged from use. Aleeria wondered idly if she would continue to take care of his clothes now that he served her house. She hoped so in an odd sort of way. It was another intimacy, much like feeding him. She set the pants to dry near the fire and began to prepare to wash the room. She put away the materials she had used to clean Sabas and his clothes and dumped the dirty water down the floor drain. Then she cleaned off the tables and benches and dumped the water again. Then she scrubbed the floor starting at the far wall and moving towards Sabas. When the water went brown, she dumped it and refilled from the tub. The floor went quickly until she reached the section six feet around Sabas where most of the dirt from cleaning him had fallen. She took the last of the water from the tub and filled two buckets and then asked Lucian to get water to refill the tub so it could warm sufficiently while she finished her tasks.

As Aleeria scrubbed at the floors, mischievously eyeing under Sabas's makeshift tunic when she was at the right angle, she began to consider Sabine's message more carefully. The thought of stripping off her own clothes in front of an audience, especially such an attentive one was rather more nerve wracking than she'd counted on. She wondered how on earth Sabas managed while she stripped and bathed him. It did seem to her that it might be easier for males than females to strip down; perhaps males were just less shy. Then she recalled Sabas's face when she'd cleaned his furless tail after pleasuring him and giggled. Well, perhaps sometimes they were just as shy.

Aleeria wasn't sure what to do. Sabas had seemed so pleased by the idea, but the thought of it now terrified her the more she considered it. She didn't regret telling him about Sabine's instructions. After all, she had to bathe herself, telling Sabas or not wouldn't change that and she did so enjoy watching his eyes light up in anticipation. But what if he found her figure less pleasing to his eyes once it was out of the shaping confinement of her clothes? She didn't have Erika's slim figure and large breasts and her skin was a patchwork of varying shades of tanned and olive skin from the different bits of her skin getting sun while she watched the Lycans. Erika was nearly always inside; protecting her pale complexion so she appeared more like the vampires she so wanted to be. At least with her dress on, her nose was the only thing that offended her, Aleeria reasoned. It was too wide for her face as Aleeria saw it. Of course, Sabas's nose wasn't so small either, but while a larger nose could be interesting and handsome on a male's face, she thought it was less easy to overlook on a woman's face. Still, Sabas hadn't objected to her breast size when he'd touched them. True, she'd been distracted at the time, but she liked to think that she'd notice if he'd shown any sign of disappointment as she had been watching his face like a hawk. But also true, as far as Aleeria knew there weren't any other women were offering.

Nevertheless, she was beyond nervous at the idea of stripping for Sabas like she was putting on a show. What did she know about seduction anyway? That was Erika's department. Touching or undressing a male was one thing, but this was uncovering herself and the idea made her feel more exposed than just being naked. Perhaps Erika had the right idea with a privacy screen after all. She hoped Sabas would understand her nerves. She also hoped rather desperately that there was a screen in the room already because having to ask Lucian seemed almost as mortifying. If she had to ask Lucian, he would know exactly what was going on in here and would have assumptions that while true, weren't the sort of thing Aleeria felt should be open knowledge. This was something private between her and Sabas, something precious, to be protected, not broadcasted.

What if Sabas didn't understand though? What if he turned cruel as so many of Erika's lovers seemed to when she tried to set boundaries. Gods, how she hated talking to Erika some days. It made her so uncertain of herself and everything else. Aleeria hadn't worried about such things before talking with Erika. She'd existed in a lovely space of not worrying about such things, because she felt comfortable and safe around Sabas.

She was still amazed at how quickly she'd reached such a high level of ease around him, but she'd initially put it off on it just being one of those rare connections where you feel perfectly at ease after meeting someone, like you've know each other all your lives. But maybe, just maybe it was because she'd thought about actually getting to spend time with Sabas so often of the many years of her life since he saved her, that she was just overlaying her own expectations and hopes over reality and ignoring whatever didn't fit . . . until her conversation with Erika. Maybe this amazing connection she'd convinced herself was there was mostly fabricated in her own mind. There was something about her interaction with Erika that made Aleeria conscious of all of Erika's cautions and complaints about her lovers over the years as well as all the ways Aleeria felt physically inferior to Erika.

Furthermore, in spite of how close Aleeria felt to Sabas, she had to remind herself that she really didn't know Sabas very well. This was in fact the first day they had ever spoken and he was by all fair judgments a stranger in most respects. By that reasoning, why would she even consider stripping herself bare for a stranger? Why should she even question her inclination to have a privacy screen as a buffer?

The obvious and unbidden answer came to her almost immediately: because Sabas didn't feel like a stranger to her and he hadn't acted like a bastard of a man either as so many of Erika's lovers did early and often. Instead, Sabas was considerate, thoughtful, and kind to her and whether it made sense or not, she'd wanted this time with him for years. Even if she felt more than he did, Aleeria wanted to enjoy the illusion that Sabas felt for her as she did for him a while longer. So the question still remained: how to approach her bath?

* * *

While Aleeria obsessively pondered the matter, Lucian refilled the tub. He noticed Aleeria's quiet focus on washing the floors, but didn't ask her what was bothering her. It felt inappropriate somehow. Aleeira barely noticed that Lucian had Raze, another of the Lycans help him carry water in and stoke the fire. It was this more than anything else that struck him as odd. Aleeira had an uncanny awareness of persons, especially immortals around her at all times and Raze was an enormous bear of a man to begin with, but Aleeria merely nodded warmly, and returned to her work, still lost in thought.

Lucian wanted to tell himself it was because of her respect for Lycans in general and trust in him in particular that made her uncharacteristically lax about her surroundings, but he'd also known her long enough to know that nothing stopped her awareness. Whatever was stirring in her mind was deeply disturbing to her and he would bet his pelt that Erika was at the root of it. Lucian suddenly wished he'd listened more closely to their interaction, but he'd found it better practice over the years to ignore everything sound that came out of Erika's mouth for the most part as a matter of course. Now he wondered what Erika had said to set Aleeria off.

Whatever it was, he hoped Sabas could coax her out of this mood, but more importantly, Lucian hoped that Erika's visit had not given Aleeria second thoughts about whatever was developing between her and Sabas. It was in such early and delicate stages and could be shattered so easily. Still, there was nothing that he could do for now, so he went back out into the hallway to resume his post and hope for the best.

* * *

Sabas was trying to ignore it, but as Aleeria moved closer to him, cleaning the room, he couldn't help but notice the way her heartbeat and scent had changed. No longer did it reflect arousal and excitement, but uneasy nerves, even a hint of fear. He could tell something was preying on her mind, but for awhile he tried to keep his thoughts focused on the prospect of her forthcoming bath and how best to use the situation to their mutual advantage. But as the minutes wore on and her tension level continued to slowly escalate rather than ease, he couldn't ignore it any more. He needed to know what was distressing her so badly.

Sabas knew it had nothing to do with Lucian as her heart rate hadn't altered when he carried enormous buckets of water into the room, nor had it varied when Raze helped Lucian in the task. That left one solid option, her conversation with Erika. He considered the options for what in that conversation could be upsetting her so much, but every time he did, the options led him to less and less favorable places. He decided he was best off just asking her rather than let them both suffer further.

He watched her through slitted eye lids for awhile first, noticing the way her eyes traveled to peer under his tunic when she was within range. Her continued interest in him pleased him. He also noticed that when she was peeking at him, her countenance seemed less troubled. This too pleased him; at least he could feel more confident that he wasn't the source of her distress. "Aleeria," he called to her softly, trying not to startle her. He saw a bright smile flash across her face and then a shadow came over her eyes even as the smile stayed fixed. "You seem uneasy."

Aleeria looked away, her gaze coming back to rest on the floor and resumed her scrubbing. She felt embarrassed that Sabas had caught onto her mood before she'd worked more of it out of her system and the idea of answering his question was more embarrassing still. "It's nothing," she lied. Sabas narrowed his eyes and though she couldn't see it, she somehow felt it. "All right, it's not nothing, but it's embarrassing and ridiculous and it's not fair of me to feel this way under the circumstances."

Sabas considered a moment. She'd been so excited when she told him about the bath, but perhaps she had changed her mind now that she'd thought about it. Or perhaps Erika had said something to make Aleeira uncomfortable or cause her worry. "Does this have something to do with either your conversation with Erika or your forthcoming bath?" Aleeria paused a moment and then resumed scrubbing the floor with increased vigor. "Please tell me." He pressed gently.

She made the mistake of looking up into his grey blue eyes and she saw the worry there and pain, she saw pain writhing just beneath the surface. Gods, she didn't want to hurt _him_, not him, but she didn't want to tell him her fears, her insecurities, her nerves either. Still, she had to make him understand. She had to find middle ground somehow or at least help him understand why she couldn't say the words. "I'm too embarrassed," she whispered. Even the sound and the shape of the words slipping off her tongue frightened her.

"Aleeria," he began his voice coaxing and gentle. "What can I do to help you feel more comfortable telling me? Are you afraid I won't like what you have to say?"

"That's part of it," Aleeria admitted. "But it's not something I want to say regardless."

Sabas considered. He wanted to tell her she could tell him anything and he wouldn't get upset, but he knew that was a lie. After all, he'd lost his temper briefly before when he'd thought that she might be spying for Sabine. "Please tell me anyway. I can't promise I won't get upset, but if Sabine message or Erika's words held something that's upset you, I'd rather know than wonder."

Aleeria looked at him sharply. "It's not like that. I mean, yes the way Erika speaks of Lycans upsets me, but that's not a new thing. She just makes me feel badly sometimes and it's just worse today."

Sabas nodded accepting, forcing in check the anger towards Erika that began to boil in him for Aleeria's sake. He knew little of the relationships between women, but he knew enough to know that they were generally complicated and tangled at best. Still, having never even had sisters, he couldn't begin to make educated guesses at what about Erika's presence or words might distress Aleeria so. "If you tell me why she upsets you, maybe I can ease your worry."

Aleeria shook her head. No amount of talking would change what she was and what she wasn't. It was better, she told herself, that they not speak of it; better that if he did for reasons that confounded her, like her looks, it was for their own sake and not because he was trying to be kind or sensitive or worse, to use her insecurity to manipulate her. He didn't think he would try the last bit, but she'd rather know he wasn't because she hadn't handed it over as ammunition.

Sabas watched her mind moving quickly considering and rejecting thoughts behind her eyes. He could see her eyes set and decided to try a different tack before she even began her refusal. Still, it pained him to offer the next possibility up to the stagnant air between them. "All right. Is part of what's bothering you have something to do with me?" He said the last word more quietly, in spite of his efforts to keep his tone neutral. Sabas reminded himself that he didn't matter; only she did, her comfort, her well-being.

Aleeria felt a stab of pain when he said it. He was too close to the mark and she could tell when the pain surfaced in his eyes, that he knew it. She stood quickly, moving closer to reassure him. She wasn't thinking about anything, but making that pain leave his eyes again. She touched his face gently and wasn't sure why it seemed like a mistake, but as soon as she did, he seemed more anguished.

As soon as the words had left his lips, Sabas had seen in her eyes that he'd been wrong, that whatever was torturing Aleeria had something to do with him. When she moved closer, touched him, he had a brief but horrible mental image that she was about to tell him gently but firmly that this thing between them was a bad idea and they should not continue it. Her words surprised him.

Something about the pain she saw in his face made her braver. She gave no thought anymore to her own concerns, only to easing his pain. Her words came out in a desperate rush. "Sabas, it's not what you think; whatever it is that you are thinking. I'm just nervous about the bath. It's stupid I know, but it's not because of something to do with you exactly. I've just never been naked in front of a male before and the idea of it makes me horribly nervous. I'm sorry, I know it's not fair of me, when I've already bathed you nose to toes, but there it is. I know it must seem like I was leading you on before, sounding excited and I was, but now the more I'm thinking about it and it makes me nervous. I'm not as brazen or experienced as Erika and I don't know how to do this."

Sabas's mind latched onto the word bath and it pulled him out of his miserable haze to hear what she was saying. His thoughts were caught somewhere between relief and renewed horror. He was grateful, obviously, that she didn't want to end whatever they'd started, but he was dismayed that she thought he would be angry with her for feeling so nervous about taking a bath in front of him. Once again, he damned the chains binding him from quieting her with a touch. "Aleeria, please stop." His voice was low and demanding.

She did, as soon as he asked it of her, shocked with herself that so much had come out before he'd stopped her. "You're angry." Her voice was quiet. Of course, he must be; he had every right to be, she told herself, biting back the hurt.

"No, I mean yes, I am, but not at you," Sabas flexed his arms, frustrated and unsure of how to explain with the right words. He wished he was better with words for her sake. "I'm an idiot for not thinking of it myself." He replied, harshly.

"No you're not. It's me, I shouldn't think this way." Aleeria insisted.

Sabas huffed out a breath. He was doing so well before. How had things gone badly so quickly? "No, you should and it's just more evidence for how uncivilized I've become that I didn't see it, expect it. I should be whipped for not realizing that you might be nervous."

"No," She said it sharply shocking them both. "Don't you ever say that again."

"Then don't you apologize for feeling as you do. You have a right." He insisted. "You've expanded your experience quite a bit for one day. It's easy to get caught up in the excitement of it all and not realize at first how far beyond your comfort level you've gone. It's like swimming out in the ocean for the first time. In the beginning, it's new and wonderful and exciting and you want to keep going further out into the waves and then before you know it, the shore seems a very far way away." He watched her eyes and saw a gratefulness shift into them.

He understood, was all she could think. Somehow, he understood and he'd managed even more surprisingly to put it into words that made her understand her own distress better. The unexpected gift of that empathy stunned her.

"Is your nervousness over bathing most of what's upsetting you?" Sabas continued.

Aleeria ran over the list in her heart. The bath was the instigating factor for the rest, the fulcrum point for her insecurities that were even now still writhing in her chest and skin like angry, hot greasy snakes. "Yes that's really what's stirring up the rest." It wasn't a lie, and she knew from the relief in his face, that he could see that.

They both knew there were facets of that one worry that she'd hadn't shared, but he knew from her response that he didn't need to press it. This was the piece he needed to know to help her.

"Aleeria," he began lightly. "You don't need to do anything that makes you so unhappy. Really. I saw a privacy screen near the fire, I assume for me to use to get dressed to protect your Mistress's delicate sensibilities. You could put it in front of the tub while you bathe."

Sabas's suggestion recalled Erika's words so sharply that it was a punch in the gut. Aleeria thought she'd told him enough, told him everything she needed to, but she was wrong. There was one other piece she had to say. It was burning a hole through her and holding it in made it feel like a gaping chest wound, bleeding more with every passing second. "Erika suggested I bathe behind a screen, but I didn't want to suggest it because I didn't want you to think that I was considering it for the same reasons she suggested it." Her eyes begged him not to ask her to explain Erika's logic further.

Sabas guessed enough of Erika's mindset by now to not need the explanation. His eyes gentled seeing at last the way she was anguishing over the very idea of hurting him. It touched him deeply, transforming his heated anger to warm tenderness. "Aleeria, I don't think you would be agonizing over talking with me about this if you didn't want me to see you that way because of what I am." I cost them both something for him to say it and her to hear it. The words held more power once spoken aloud.

"It's not about that at all," She replied, her voice a choked whisper. "I swear it."

"I believe you. Why don't you move the screen in front of the tub and see if that will suit you?"

Aleeria impulsively gave him a quick and fierce hug, over almost before it had started and turned to move the screen, embarrassed with herself again, but enjoying the memory and comfort of what it felt like to hold onto him again for a moment.

Sabas was pleasantly shocked by the sudden burst of warmth and affection. He watched her curiously as she moved across the room and with surprising strength and grace, moved the screen into place in front of the fire. While Aleeria stood behind the screen to angle it around the tub to suit her needs, Sabas couldn't help but notice the lovely form of her silhouette moving behind the screen and backlit by the roaring fire. He was pleased that Lucian had built up the fire again to help warm the bath water and Aleeria herself while she was bathing, but he was even more pleased now that he could see the benefits, or rather the outline of Aleeria's benefits.

Aleeria felt calmer now that things felt more settled, but still anxious, vacillating between worrying still that she was being unfair, more anxiety when she considered not using the screen. When the screen was arranged to her satisfaction, she turned back to Sabas. The screen stopped just above her shoulders. He was watching her with that hungry look back in his eyes. She smiled at him. "What are you smiling at?" She asked.

"You fair captor," he replied smoothly. "I think that screen has provided a lovely compromise. You see, while I cannot see you directly, your shadow is quite illuminating on my side."

Aleeria moved to the opposite side of the screen and observed the clear outline of the bathtub slightly enlarged by the fire's light and projected onto the screen itself for her to see. She blushed. "I see. So you can watch me and I can enjoy the forgiving nature of shadows to smooth over my flaws without feeling so exposed."

"You have no flaws that I can see." Sabas argued.

Aleeria warmed at that, but she knew they were only words until they were tested. "That sounds like a fine compromise to me. I suppose that I should finish the floor then so I can get to my bath."

* * *

A/N: I really loved writing this chapter. Gods, it was so emotional to write though. I'm still a little stuck on the next chapter. I know the bones, but I'm still stumbling over fleshing it out. Hopefully, I'll sort it out in a the next couple weeks.


	9. Making the Room Disappear

**fanficfan84:** It never ceases to thrill me when my writing can make someone's day. Even better, that you love the story because of the writing and Sabas is the yummy bonus. It always seems like some sort of miracle. I would love nothing better than for Sabas's character be signed over to me . . . so many delightful possibilities. There are elements I enjoy in so many of his roles he plays that make him stand out even before you recognize the actor and even when his role is minor. Underworld is really a prime example. I loved his character and it caught my attention even before I realized Craig was Sabas. That's beyond normal talent. It's awesome that you noticed the different pieces I've tried to incorporate to fill in the gaps and make him feel real to me. I'm even more thrilled you love Aleeria because damn there are some heroines I hate in more romance stories. I really wanted to write someone I'd want to be friends with. I love Moonlight. I'm sort of considering a crossover between Underworld, Moonlight and Blade somewhere down the line.

**luthien587**: I really wanted to capture all the inner dialogue and insecurities and excitements of a new relationship, particularly that first love and I wanted to do it from both sides without making either person seem weak, particularly Sabas. I have a bad habit of emasculating my male characters. It's not intentional, but it's easy to cross that line. I'm really trying to write Sabas as someone who is strong and vulnerable. Aw hell, I'm trying to write a believable male who isn't another likable Neanderthal. I'm glad you think that's working out so far. You'll have to keep me posted.

I never feel like you repeat yourself on your reviews and I certainly don't judge or compare. I really appreciate you taking the time to let me know you're enjoying it and why. Even if you tell me the same thing twice, it means I'm still doing it well and keeping up the quality that matters so much to me. So it is always helpful and always appreciated. Though I confess that I often worry that I'm repeating myself too much when I say thanks, but oh well.

I'm feeling a lot better now, thanks. Chains come off in the next one and it is already underway. Also, I love Spartacus: Blood and Sand. I know he's evil, but damn he's hot and still so good and being bad . . . I have an idea for a Glaber fanfic incubating in the corners of my mind and when I get another idea for it, I write it down. One of these days, I might get it up on here, but for now, I'm going to stick with Sabas for awhile. I don't want to start a third story until I finish this one and my POTC story that I've been neglecting.

**Nannerpuss**: I'm so glad you found my story and are enjoying it! I look forward to hearing how you enjoy the rest. Yes, Erika is the one from the first underworld movie. I am so excited about the 4th movie! Thanks for the heads up, I didn't realize it had moved back rumor status. I love Lucian and raze. I hope that somehow they bring them back in more than flashbacks and bring Sabas in too.

P.S. I love babbling from my readers. Never any need to apologize. ;p

**Taylorxtorniquet:** Thanks so much for feedback. I'm glad you're enjoying the ride.

**Maggie 56: **I'm excited to work more with Erika as the story progresses. I wish you many muses on your story; I can't wait to see what happens. I'm so glad the tension worked out well in the last chapter. I really worked hard to keep the tension there, but not too high for the entire chapter. I just saw you're update to **Black Rose, Dark Day**. I can't wait to get to it. I'll let you know when I do. I would have posted last night, but I got distracted by the first part of your new chapter and then it got late . . . I promise to update as soon as I finish reading it. Also, thanks for the shout out. I promise to keep reviewing as long as you keep writing it. Don't get discouraged. It took me months to get five reviews on my POTC fanfic, which is searchable and only one or two chapters to get that for this story.

**Soaring hawk:** I hope this chapter relieves the anxiety of the wait. Thanks for reminding me of how Lo-ong it was since my last update. It pushed me to edit this faster.

**Whitlock Mystic Jazzy**: Hope you enjoy this latest installment, welcome to the story.

**BritishPixie**: I'm so glad you enjoyed the last chapter. I'm so glad you gave me the idea. I hope you enjoy this chapter too. It's full of lots of teasing goodness.

**Blueangelsvntn**: Welcome to Beautiful Disaster. Thanks for the shout out.

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A/N: I'm sorry this took so long. I'm taking a class through the end of this month and the homework is insane. Thank you for all your reviews. Your support, encouragement, and awesome feedback are invaluable. I'll say it over and over, but I mean it down to my marrow every time. It helped me stay focused and encouraged while this chapter came together. As a point of interest, if anyone is interested, I really struggled to put together a chapter with the right balance of sexual tension, emotional underlying tension and set up the chapters to come. So much more to tell . . .

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**Chapter 9: Making the Room Disappear **

[Scandalous/ Strictly Physical/Too Lost in You/Perfect lover/ooh baby/lick/carryout]

Aleeria felt a heat build under her skin as she finished scrubbing down the room that was part anticipation and part shyness under Sabas's smoldering stare. Something was changing in the room again. She'd forgotten all about Erika once more under the feel of his eyes on her. They snuck secret smiles at each other while Aleeria finished scrubbing the floor.

Aleeria began to notice there was a gleam in Sabas's eyes when he looked at her, a quirk to his lips that was full of mischief. "You look like you have a naughty secret." Aleeria teased, her eyes honing in on him.

Sabas couldn't help the smile that lit up his eyes while he returned her gaze. "Perhaps I do."

"Would you like to share it with me?"

"Maybe," he replied, teasing out the word.

"Maybe," she repeated, matching his tone. "What do I need to do to hear this secret?"

"Trust me," he replied simply.

"All right," Aleeria agreed.

Sabas cocked his head. "Are you done with your work?"

"Nearly," Aleeria replied, her breath coming more quickly.

"Finish your work and then tell Lucian to keep visitors away as you will be taking your bath presently."

Aleeria watched him carefully caught somewhere between curiosity and the thrall of Sabas's grey blue eyes. "And after I do, will you tell me your secret?"

"After you do those things, I will tell you more." Sabas replied mysteriously.

Aleeria let herself swirl in his eyes a moment before returning to her work. She finished with the floor, carefully pouring the rest of the water down the drain. Then she moved towards the tub. She ran a slender finger through the still water. It felt perfect. She turned back to Sabas who was still watching her like a lion with prey in his sights. "I'll tell Lucian to keep the hallway clear." She managed a saucy smile, no easy feat with him watching her with those predator's eyes.

"I'll be waiting anxiously for your return. Don't be long." The hunger in his eyes was hypnotic.

Aleeria nodded and left the room, marveling again at the tone of command that came into his voice even while he was for all intents and purposes immobilized. His tone possessed a compelling power that she wasn't sure she could resist even if she had the desire to. It was a startling realization and she wondered softly why she wasn't more concerned. She supposed the simple answer was the basic and inexplicable trust that she felt for him, but it was still quite staggering, as even vampires could not compel her, thought she hid that fact well.

Sabas noted that Aleeria was in far better spirits than she had been. No longer could he scent fear and worry. No, indeed not. Now, he scented precisely what he needed for his aims to be successful. If he wanted her to desire him enough to keep out thoughts of anyone else, Aleeria needed to associate him with pleasant memories, not anxious ones. The honeyed scent beginning to waft from her before she left the room signaled to him that her mind was almost where he needed it to be for his plan to work.

Out in the shadowy hallway, she thought she saw shadows moving at the end of the hallway again, but again when Lucian started down the hallway towards her, he was alone.

"Aleeria," he greeted. "What can I do for you?"

"I know you heard enough of my Mistress's orders to know I have been instructed to bathe myself after such a long day of filthy work."

"Of course," he replied, barely repressing laughter.

"I'm going to do so now as my other tasks are completed and would most appreciate it if you would see to it that I am not disturbed. I don't care to be gawked at or interrupted while I bathe."

Lucian nodded, the laughter escaping into his eyes. "It will be done to the best of my ability. If someone does feel the need to impose, I assure you that I will accompany them and see that you are given the courtesy of a knock at the door."

Aleeria nodded. It was by far the best she could hope for. "I appreciate your efforts on my behalf, Lucian. It will not be forgotten."

She returned to the interrogation room and locked the door behind her.

"You're very brave indeed locking yourself in here with a Lycan," Sabas rumbled.

Aleeria smiled coyly at him. "Perhaps I am." She took another step closer. "Well, I did as you asked. Now will you tell me your secret?"

"Perhaps. Come closer." Sabas commanded.

Compelled almost beyond her ability to stop herself, Aleeria moved towards him. When she stood in front of him, his stare seemed to make the rest of the room evaporate. Dimly she heard his voice tell her to come closer still. "I will tell you my secret now, but I have to whisper it to you. It is a secret after all." Aleeria did so, bending her head so Sabas could whisper into her ear, his breath a caress over her sensitive skin.

"Dear Aleeria, the secret of my smile is this: I have thought of a delightful way to repay you for your kindness to me in my time of suffering. I will perform a magic trick. I will make this room disappear for you." He nuzzled his nose into the soft hollow of her cheek.

Never in her life had she imagined that the word suffering could hold so much erotic connotation. Aleeria shivered and began to lean up against his shoulder as he continued to whisper in her ear. Her legs would no longer support her fully. How had he spun her emotions so quickly from nerves and insecurity to dizzy with lust?

"Really?" She murmured against his chest. "And how are you going to do that? You're _still_ all chained up." She couldn't quite keep the note of frustration out of her voice.

Sabas chuckled, vibrating her head against his chest. "I intend to tell you a story of sorts. This story will detail to you exactly what I would do to repay your kindness if I were unchained. What I intend to do still when we have the proper opportunity."

Aleeria shuddered against him. "And what will I do while you tell me this story?"

"You will take your bath and participate in the story," Sabas purred into her ear.

"How?" She asked nearly breathless, not daring to look into his eyes, her entire awareness swallowed up by the texture of his voice.

"I will ask you questions and you will answer them. I will tell you to do certain things with those skilled hands of yours and you will do them." His tongue slowly traced the outer edge of her ear before nipping gently on the lobe. "Does this sound like a story you would like to hear?"

"Oh yes, very much," she moaned.

Sabas sucked lightly on her ear lobe, eliciting more moans. "Will you trust me and participate in the story as I instruct you to?"

Aleeria nodded. What else could she do? She trusted him in a way she trusted no one else and she was deep under the spell of his voice. He was working magic in the room already it seemed. "I will. What should I do first?"

He could hear her breathing become ragged as she continued to lean against him. It helped to distract Sabas from the lack of sensation he felt in his arms. He was going to be supremely worn out by the time Sabine finally had him let down. He forced his thoughts away from that for now. There would be time enough to worry about such things later. For now, he wanted to keep his focus on Aleeria and off the deep and increasing pains in his own body. "First, tell me how are you feeling Fair Captor?"

"I feel so strange." Aleeria murmured softly.

"Tell me," he cajoled lightly.

"I feel tingly and unfocused, and on fire and so excited I feel like I could burst. I feel a sort of restless hunger inside me." She curled herself into him, absently stroking at his wool-covered chest.

"I hope to sate that hunger, for awhile anyway," Sabas promised.

"Where shall I start?"

He eyed her with pleased speculation. What did he want her to unveil first? "I want you to start by taking your hair back down. It's so beautiful; long and soft and dark. I was most disappointed when you had to put it back up when Lucian brought us our dinner."

Aleeria warmed and began to slowly take the pins back out of her hair, keeping her eyes locked on Sabas's the whole time. Her hair fell in long, dark waves around her face and shoulders. She could see his enjoyment of her released hair in his eyes. It felt like a silken cloak around her, protecting her, making her feel braver. Her attention slid into his enthralling gaze and she leaned in, softly brushing her lips over his. They both sighed at the contact, the intimacy of the feather touch and she took one step forward to steady herself.

He loved the way her hair looked wrapped around her face and upper body, backlit by the fire and glowing. She looked otherworldly with her hair down, like a pleasantly surprised goddess that found herself in an unexpected, yet serendipitous situation. From the mischievous gleam growing in her eyes, Sabas guessed _his_ goddess intended to take full enjoyment of this state of affairs. When she kissed him then it only made him feel more like he'd stepped into a dream, a wonderful liquid dream; the kind that pulls and submerses, that slides into your blood and breath and being, drowning you sweetly into surrender. Then she took a step forward and brushed her body against his wool-covered length that was starting to quest out to her once more. The groan it tore from them both was a jolt, but instead of jumping back, they lightly rubbed their foreheads together, taking steadying mingled breaths.

"Go to the bath, moving slowly. You must move slowly unless I tell you otherwise," Sabas demanded softly, his voice ragged.

Aleeria nodded understanding. If she moved to quickly, it would break her out of the spell he was casting. She moved to the tub, behind the screen, casting Sabas a backwards glance behind half-lidded lashes. Illuminated as she was by the firelight, she looked like a fire sprite to him and she cast her own spell on him. She held his gaze until he recovered his tongue enough to continue.

"Now, unlace your dress."

Aleeria nodded slowly before turning her attention to the blue linen of her dress. She was grateful her clothing choice had been simple that day. She was certain anything more complex would have eluded her at this point as her hands were already trembling. Her blue linen dress laced up the front from the waist before flaring out. She worked the black cotton laces free and let the lacing hang from the last two holes. Her eyes drifted up to his again and she watched his tongue slide briefly over his lips.

"Take the dress of Aleeria, slowly." His voice was rougher still as he watched her silhouette through the screen.

She slid the sleeves down off her shoulders and let her dress fall to the floor. Then she picked it up and hung it off the side of the nearest table, stepping out from behind the screen for a moment in only her chemise. Sabas's eyes widened. There was a wet spot the size of a hand print on the bottom of Aleeria's skirt.

"My dear Aleeria, your skirt seems to be a bit, ah, wet."

She looked it over, forgetting that she was dressed only in her chemise and saw what he was talking about. There was indeed a wet spot on the back of her dress. Reflexively, Aleeria felt the back of her chemise, and found a matching wet spot, larger than the first, leaving her in no doubt as to how she had acquired the spot. It was no wonder really with as worked up as Sabas had her. She was entirely drunk on her want of him. She'd experienced the something similar while watching him in the yard. Still, she felt embarrassed admitting such a thing. "I must have sat in water when I was cleaning your pants," Aleeria lied, blushing.

Sabas could smell the lie of it though. She'd wanted him enough that he could not only smell, it but see it. That vision of seeing how much she'd wanted him would stay with him for many lonely nights to come. His eyes contracted as the knowledge and implications rippled through him. He could misinterpret her words, her tone, even some of her body language, but this was undeniable proof, that whatever else was or wasn't there between them, she wanted him, apparently rather desperately, and he could build on that. Sabas saw the basket Sabine had Erika bring to Aleeria on the corner of the table nearest to him. "Get the basket your Mistress left you and tell me what's inside." He instructed.

Aleeria did as he asked; her awareness of how thin her chemise was grew with every step she took towards him. She felt the moment was suddenly more intimate, as the only time she usually walked around in naught but her chemise was when she went to bed and her bed was a place she often imagined Sabas and his hands on her. "There are two towels, a wash cloth, a bar of soap, and a robe," she detailed obediently. All in all, doing as she was told was certainly a game she was good at, even if it had never been under circumstances such as these before. She wondered momentarily if Sabine had any idea that Aleeria's day might turn out this way. Then she saw Sabas's makeshift tunic tenting out in front of him and her mind went blank with renewed desire. All she could think about was the feel of his hardened flesh under her fingers.

Fortunately, Aleeria was unaware that with the firelight shining into the room, Sabas was able to see a perfect silhouette of her naked body under her white chemise in greater detail than the screen allowed and more than that, as she came closer, he could see right through the thin material. His mouth began to water and he found it increasingly difficult to swallow. Sabas choked a little trying to clear his throat to continue his instructions. He wanted desperately to tell her to come over to him and put her hands on him, but he resisted. This time it was about her needs, not his. "Take the basket to the tub and put it within arm's reach," He began, trying not to let his eyes cross as he noticed the way the chill in the room so far from the fire made her nipples more obvious through her chemise.

Aleeria took a few deliberate breaths and gave him a small smile as she moved back behind the screen. It was all she could do not to bury her head back into the contents of the basket and release another scream, but this one of raw want and frustrated need. Damn those chains, she cursed inwardly. She put the basket down in arm's reach of the bath, and turned expectantly to Sabas. "Now what would you like me to do _my_ _prisoner_?"

Sabas made a sound in his throat that sounded like a poorly repressed growl. "Ah . . . is the water warm enough?"

Aleeria dipped a finger into the water and ran it from one side to the other and then licked the water off slowly, her eyes on his the whole time. She had a sudden desire to make him burn as she burned. He didn't disappoint her as he closed his eyes for a moment before responding and made more unintelligible sounds. "It's perfect." She answered in a sultry tone.

"Take off your chemise." His voice was a low growl.

Aleeria nodded and after a final back ward glance turned back to the fire and slowly lifted the chemise over her head and let it drop beside her dress.

"Are you wearing anything else that should not go into the bath Aleeria?"

Aleeria looked down at herself. Only her stockings remained and her pantalettes and she told Sabas as much.

"Take those off as well." He instructed. Aleeria raised an eye brow and bend over to comply while Sabas watched her very revealing shadow. "Now, slowly get into the bath tub, and be careful not to slip."

Aleeria stood free of her discarded clothes and lifted one leg over the lip of the tub, gripping the sides tightly. The water was just shy of being too hot. It felt amazing. Her skin had gotten colder than she realized, moving about the room in next to nothing. She sighed deeply, sinking into the bath.

Sabas watched her descend into the tub closely; noticing that when she stood briefly with one foot in the tub before the rest of her body followed he could almost see the fully-bared curve of her breasts over the top edge of the screen. His blood rushed through him, hot and demanding. When he could see her body sink beneath the edge of the tub, he took a few moments to calm himself before continuing. He heard her sigh in contentment as she slid beneath the surface of the water. "Does the water feel good Aleeria?"

Aleeria sighed again, her eyes closed. "Yes. It feels wonderful. I was getting rather cold standing in my chemise."

"I noticed," Sabas chuckled.

Aleeria let out a nervous chuckle, blushing behind the screen. "I see. It seems little escapes your notice."

"Not where a beautiful almost naked woman is concerned, no," he confessed guilelessly. If she had any idea how true that was . . . How many years he'd watched her and noticed no others . . .

"I should tell you that your reaction to my chilled skin was quite noticeable as well." She teased back.

Sabas chuckled. "I should think so. As I said, males have a much more obvious sign of interest."

"Indeed you do. I like it," she murmured, her breath shimmering over the water like fog.

"I liked seeing you in naught but your chemise." He murmured back. "I'd like to see you without it as well, but I digress. Tell me Aleeria do you ever touch yourself when you bathe?"

A giggle tore out of her throat. Her skin felt hot and nervy from his words more than the water. "To wash myself, of course." She replied. She had no an idea where Sabas was going with this game, but she was excited to let it play out.

"What about for pleasure?"

"Not in the bath," Aleeria replied playfully.

"But you have at other times?" He pressed lightly, matching her tone.

"Yes."

"When?"

"Before bed," and in my tower when I watch you, she added silently. "To help me sleep," she explained. And to make me dream of you, she thought.

"Do you ever think about someone in particular when you do this?"

"Yes." She thought about him. Aleeria only ever thought about Sabas in that way.

Sabas wanted to ask Aleeria if she thought of him when she touched herself, but he didn't want to hear her answer if it was "no" or even if it was "sometimes," so he moved on. "When you touch yourself, does it satisfy you, the way you satisfied me earlier?"

Aleeria thought back, "Yes, it does, for awhile."

He chuckled. "Aleeria, you know that I would like to touch you if I were free, to ease the hunger you feel."

"I know you do."

"I will tell you the things I would do to you now if I could." Sabas was careful to phrase it in that way because while a part of his mind was even now considering how much he'd like to bury himself inside her that was hardly a course of action he could pursue yet even if he were free. Aleeria was nervous enough about being seen naked. It would have been much too soon in their relations to actually do the things parts of him so desperately wanted to. Sabas knew he was fortunate things had progressed as far and as fast as they had. "I want you to first wet the wash cloth your Mistress left you and lather a thick layer of soap onto it."

Aleeria bent herself over the side of the tub to reach into the basket, giving Sabas a perfect view of the silhouetted curves of her backside while she reached for the soap and wash cloth. When she was done lathering the cloth, the soap slid out of her hands sinking to the bottom of the tub.

"Imagine that I am there with you in the bath tub, facing you," he continued.

She felt like lightening had struck the water. The very idea of _her_ Lycan sitting in the water across from her, of him being in the water with her, naked and with his furless tail at attention made her feel like the water was electrified. It felt so real. Her mind was so ready to make it real for her, desperate to. She could almost feel the slide of his wet, muscular legs moving beside her own.

"Now imagine that I am washing your legs one at a time, starting with the left."

Aleeria slid the wash cloth over her feet, her legs. She moved through her waking dream, languidly, savoring every imagined touch, careful not to miss a spot, going entirely by sensation as she kept her eyes closed so she could see Sabas washing her. He talked her through washing her legs, feet, but he steered clear of the places she really wanted him to touch first.

"Now imagine that I've moved to sit behind you in the tub."

Aleeria shivered pleasantly, her hear thudding as she imagined the feel of his chest sliding against her bare back. In her mind, it was his hands that washed her back, her face and hair. She could feel his fingers combing lightly against her scalp and his fingers lingering over the curves and dips of her face, brushing gently over her lips and she remembered the feel of his lips sliding over hers. Then she imagined Sabas sliding the cloth down her neck and shoulders towards the places she wanted him, but he had her wash her hands and arms then slide down her sides instead. When Sabas told her to slide the cloth down her sides, he told her to graze the edges of her breasts before sliding down to her belly. Aleeria made frustrated sounds of protest. "Sabas, please." She pleaded.

"Perhaps I should tease you further as you teased me," he replied, thinking of when she had washed him.

"You've teased me enough," She argued, her own voice growing rougher. Aleeria nearly told Sabas that his very being there was teasing enough, but she wasn't quite brave enough to say those words aloud, not matter how true they were. She heard his low chuckle and then Sabas told her to move the cloth back up to wash her chest and moaned in relief. Her waking dream felt more real as she drew on her recent memories of his actual touch on her breasts. She could feel Sabas slide the cloth over her rounded flesh, caressing and teasing her, massaging and gently plucking at her until she was breathless with need.

While Sabas spoke to Aleeria, his eyes tracked her hungrily. He watched the outlines of her long, rounded legs coming out of the water as she washed them each in turn, imagining how they would feel if he could slide his hands up them. Once he'd finished having her cleaning all the more innocuous parts of her body and moved his instructions to her chest, Sabas heard, clearly, her heavy relieved sigh and saw her briefly turn her head his way. He hoped her mind was where his was, those blissful stolen minutes when he had actually touched her there earlier. He could no longer smell her deliriously entrancing scent; all he could smell was wood fire and lavender soap, but he could still hear the pounding of her heart and the rapid rise and fall of her chest. It made him grateful once more for his keen Lycan hearing and Sabas wondered how he could have ever cursed being turned from man to beast.

"And now my dear Aleeria, now, lather soap onto the cloth again as you did for me," his tone leaving her in no doubt of his intentions.

She did as he asked and began to move according to his instructions. Aleeria's hands trembled with nerves and need as sought out the bar of soap in the water. She found it at last between her thighs, nudging up against her and smiled, giggling lightly as she imagined it was Sabas nudging the soap against her. She built a thick lather onto the cloth. "I'm ready."

A low laugh rumbled in his belly. By now, she was very ready Sabas was sure. "Now, take the cloth and guide it across your thighs. Then back and forth between them, slowly making your way higher until you reach the place where your thighs join."

Aleeria followed his words with her the soapy cloth in her hands, imagining his hands gliding up her legs. She imagined his water slick arms wrapped around her as one hand dipped between her thighs and the other began to swirl around one plump pink nipple and then the other. She'd touched herself in a similar way before when thinking of Sabas, but never when entirely naked in the intimacy of her bath nor had she ever seen or felt him around her so clearly. His voice became flesh and that flesh became pleasure, wave after wave of pleasure.

"Slide one finger free of the cloth between you thighs. Tell me what you feel like, so I can imagine I am touching you as you are imagining that I am touching you." Sabas pleaded huskily.

Aleeria followed his instructions, sliding her middle finger then the two flanking ones between her legs, spreading them wider to give her better access. She'd never felt so aroused in her entire life. "I feel hot and slippery," she whispered, feeling self-conscious. "Like melted butter," she sighed into the steam-filled air around the tub.

Sabas closed his eyes and sighed. He could almost feel her parting under his questing fingers, her skin quivering under his touch. Aleeria would feel so good wrapped around him. His awareness momentarily disappeared in that thought before returning his attention to her pleasure in the here and now. "Put the cloth where your fingers are and begin to move the cloth slowly back and forth."

The water rippled around her, and then it began to boil from her movements. Small waves crashed against the sides and spilled over onto the stone floor where they hissed in from of the fire. Sabas could see the outline of her breasts as her body arched over the lip of the tub. He told her to move faster, her breathing becoming gasps and cries, her sweet voice moaning as her hips undulated and her hand moved faster.

The world spun away until there was only the waves of water and ecstasy and the relentless low commands in his voice. Aleeria didn't hear herself cry out when she came for his voice. She didn't know when she stopped moving her hands and merely held the cloth against herself, barely consciousness. She only knew she'd needed that moment beyond thought or reasons and she wanted it again with him. She wanted him with a desperate hunger that startled her enough that she couldn't ignore it, but not enough to chase the feeling away. In her half conscious state, she could feel Sabas surround her with sensation.

When awareness returned, she turned her head towards Sabas. Aleeria could see the look in his eyes, awed and hungry. She understood what he'd meant about his hunger for her being only temporarily sated. She already wanted him again. "Is anyone coming?" She breathed softly.

"No." Sabas looked at her curiously, wondering what she was up to.

"Good, I'm getting out."

Aleeria held the cloth tightly against herself with one hand and got slowly out of the tub while steadying herself with her other hand. The movement of getting out of the tub combined with the placement of her hand sent new and distracting waves of pleasure through her. Then she put on the waiting bath robe and walked over to him, cloth in hand. She couldn't feel the cold of the floor any longer, all she could feel was the invisible cord of raw need pulling her towards Sabas. He looked as desperate as ever and she could see where the fabric tented distinctively below his waist. Aleeria moved carefully, brushing her lips over his and nuzzling her cheek against his affectionately. "Thank you, that was wonderful, but it seems that you are suffering once more."

"Indeed I am. It seems your skills of torture are such that you no longer need lay a finger on me to see to my torment." Sabas replied, his voice strained.

"Let me ease it once more," Aleeria murmured into his ear in low, seductive tones that made all his resolve that this time it was about her needs and not his own, melted away. She lifted aside the wool blanket to give herself access to his furless tail once more. Using the cloth still slick with her moisture and the soapy lather, Aleeria wrapped the warm, wet cloth around his intoxicatingly solid length.

Sabas shuddered, feeling the warmth from her thighs, still radiating from the cloth, surround him. It was almost as good as he imagined being inside her would be. Sabas closed his eyes, feeling the cloth move against him, slippery with her wetness, made more plentiful by her wanting for him, the pleasure he'd given to her. The thought of it pushed him back over the edge as surely as her motions and her nearness. When he cried out once more, Aleeria nuzzled her face into his cheek again, kissing him again and stroked his face.

"Your future mate will be a very fortunate Lycan indeed. That's another I owe you," Sabas promised softly.

"Just don't forget it." Aleeria whispered into his ear, giving it a bold lick along the edge.

"You have my word on that." Sabas replied gruffly affectionate. "Is there more that I can do for you now?"

Her body still shook from his 'bath time story.' "I'm not sure my fragile human body can handle much more." The aftershocks of her orgasm still shuddered through her like a pulse.

"Then some things will just have to wait until I make you a Lycan like me."

The promise in his words tore through her as surely as her release had and Aleeria merely nodded in response, unable to do more. She clung to him for awhile until her body felt calmer.

The sun was going down. They could both feel it and they knew they had little time before they were interrupted again. Better to finish things for the day on their own terms. She kissed him again slow and lingering on the feel and flavor of his mouth before beginning to get dressed in her clean clothes.

"I need to get dressed now and tell my Mistress that you are ready for clothes," Aleeria explained quietly. "You'll be free soon."

"I'm very much looking forward to that." He watched her move away from him, his eyes tracking her keenly.

"As am I," she agreed, moving back behind the screen to change.

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A/N: Whew, is it hot in here, or is it just Sabas? I love that Lycan . . . The chains come off next for the next chapter. Sorry this last chapter took so long. The rest of the chapters will hopefully come along more quickly. Chapter 10 is already underway.


	10. Sliding Back Behind Masks

**fanficfan84:** So happy we could be in sync with this chapter. There's nothing like hoping something will update and then it does. I had that experience with one of my favorites: Bound to the Prince- it's a Prince Nuada fic and inspired me to work more on this chapter and the next one.

BTW I really loved the Blade series. I think if I can work out the logistics, the crossover I'm considering will be the sequel to this story if I can work out the kinks logistically with merging two different vampire universes.

Honestly, it's been rather torturous keeping Sabas all tied up like this, thought finding ways for him to be an active seductor while in chains has been an excellent exercise in creativity. I'm so glad they're coming off even as I know the story is about to become more complicated. I hope these next couple chapters live up to at least a little of the anticipation.

I'm glad you enjoyed this new side of Sabas. It was so much fun to write. I seriously had sympathy tears when I read about your power outage tragedy. That sucks! I lost 40 pages once in a similar accident and spent the next 2 weeks trying to recreate it. The first day was making elaborate notes on everything I'd worked on and then the rest was filling in the blanks. I'll have to check out your stories one of these days, I love Vampire Diaries. I am glad this chapter cheered you up though.

**Princess of all Vampires**: Thanks for the great review. Welcome to the story. Here is more. Much more.

**luthien587**: I love your volumes of great feedback. Seriously, they're just awesome. The more the better.

Thanks for appreciating the role reversal trick last chapter, it was really tricky pulling it off. I also really appreciate your feedback on the characters. It's always super rewarding to know when your readers are seeing and experiencing things the way you intend them too. And yes, Sabas is a fine specimen of a man. Wow.

I would love it if you ever feel like checking out my POTC fanfic. Maybe you can help me figure out what's not working for it if anything. It could just be that there is so much more POTC fic out there than Underworld and that I am not writing a Jack Sparrow/ Elizabeth fic. I also am not true to Elizabeth's character in the movies because it served the story better. Ah well, maybe it'll get more love once things heat up a bit more. I'll get back to working on it soon I think.

I am totally a speed reader with stories where the details aren't working for me or I just am not caring about the secondary characters and I am even worse about it in fanfic. But when the details are amazing and really add to the story, I have to read every single one every time I read and re-read it. It's so awesome that you put me in that category. I really agonize over my word choice and phrasing to make sure that the words that are there need to be there and the rest are scrapped. A writer friend gave me that advice once. He said if you're not interested no one else will be either and if words make it through the editing phase, they should matter. I really love pushing myself to make this story as great as it can be and not slack off just because it's fanfic. I see it as a great way to become a great writer and tell a great story that damn it, has to be told. Thanks for all the extremely thoughtful feedback. It means the world to me. I hope I continue to become one of your favorite fanfic authors. Happy reading on these next two chapters.

**Taylorxtorniquet:** I loved you review. I could totally hear you in the room. I think the reviews for this chapter made my bff realize she needed to read this story. I love writing this story and it's so awesome that you all enjoy reading it apparently as much as I enjoy writing it. I especially had fun writing Sabas as a seductor even while he was all chained up. Ah, how much better he'll be once he's unrestrained (I hope).

**Soaring hawk:** Thanks for the great review. Here are two more chapters for your enjoyment.

**BritishPixie**: Much thanks for the awesome review. So glad you gave me this idea. I have so far to go with this story . . . I can't wait 'til things progress . . . that's all I'm saying.

**Blueangelsvntn**: Thanks for the great review. Here are two more chapters for your enjoyment.

**Ardimus: **Hi there. I'm so excited I finally enticed you into reading this! Best day ever! (For those of you who don't know Ardimus is one of my best friends since forever)

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A/N: So I went to write this chapter and it turned out to be two. So I posted them both because I felt the natural break was in a place that would not get the chains off as promised on Chapter 10, so Chapter 11 is up too so you can see the chains come off at last. Also, I make reference to Viktor's wife. In this reality, the chain of Elders (one awake, two asleep) has not begun yet, William has been captured though. Viktor's wife is still alive and her name is taken from the prequel novel, Blood Enemy. Also if you want to know how I pictures Sabine, google Maharet, Queen of the Damned and that should give you a good idea.

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**Chapter 10: Sliding Back Behind Masks**

My soundtrack if you're interested: [Vivian Wounded/ The Kiss- Elektra/ Saving Josh by Trevor Morris/Beautiful Disaster/Eternity and a Day/ Vold Eyes/ Across the Stars]

Aleeria reluctantly began to dry herself off with the soft towel that Sabine had left for her. Their time was nearly up. She kept glancing over at Sabas as she dressed. He looked exhausted when he thought she wasn't looking, but it disappeared the instant their eyes touched. "You look exhausted. I hope I haven't tortured you too enthusiastically." She teased, trying to hide her concern.

"If this is your idea of torture you can chain me up any day." Sabas grinned, hiding his fatigue as best he could.

"You're not so bad at torture yourself." She replied with a smile, slyly eyeing the bathtub she'd occupied not long before.

"I had an excellent subject to practice on." He replied, matching her tone.

Jealous heat flooded her. Aleeria suddenly had disturbing images of Sabas and other women in similar scenarios. Of course, she was but one of many practice subjects for him, merely the most recent, and not necessarily the most memorable. He was after all many decades older than she was. At the very least, he certainly had a life before he came here to the castle to be turned. "Oh? Your wife from before you were turned?" She asked, trying to sound casual though her emotions at the moment were anything but.

"No, you." Sabas clarified, puzzled at her question. "I had no wife before I was turned."

Aleeria smiled, her sudden flash of insecurities mollified. Knowing he had no wife before he was turned pleased her in ways she could scarcely articulate nor understand fully why it suddenly mattered so much. Still the idea that in spite of her volumes of inexperience by comparison, that she could still be special to him, to _her_ Lycan . . . she scarcely dared form the thought it was so desirable to her.

Sabas could scent her sudden anxiety. "Aleeria, why would you think I was talking about someone other than you?"

She turned away from him, embarrassed. What was wrong with her? She'd never felt so crazy in her life, but her emotions were running amok like villagers in the face of wild Lycans. "I'm sorry; I don't know why I thought . . . I wasn't thinking. It's just that you are so . . . and I'm not and surely you are as skilled as you are at this sort of thing," she indicated the tub with a wave of her hand, "because of the others you've had before me." She could feel her skin getting hotter with each passing word until she was certain she'd just catch fire and immolate in mortification right there.

Sabas's eyes gentled as he began to understand the source of her anxiety and he set out to reassure her as best he could. "I haven't had so many others before today. I've been a slave most of my life. Slaves hardly can do as they please."

"So you would have had more if you were able to?" Aleeria blurted, hating herself for having to ask the question.

Sabas pursed his lips. He didn't want to lie to her, but he didn't want to upset her further. The truth was he was a male with healthy appetites; he likely would have sampled more if more had been offered. "Possibly, but that doesn't make you any less. Aleeria don't think about such things," he beseeched her. Then a wicked smile played over his lips as a wave of pleasurable memory of her touch flashed through him. "No one has ever tortured me like you have."

His enticingly delivered comment elicited an answering giggle from her lips. "You're incorrigible. I should tell Sabine to leave you here with me awhile longer so I can teach you some proper manners before you're brought into the house."

"Well, if you insist, though I think you will at least agree that I repay my debts well." Sabas grinned, relieved that her heart once more sounded as though it raced from pleasant thoughts once more.

Aleeria quirked a mischievous smile at him, "For now, but you have more debts to repay once you're freed."

"Whatever my captor desires. I will keep my eyes open for opportunity to repay my debts in full and perhaps even establish some credit on future favors on my behalf." His words were innocent enough, but the hungry gleam in his eyes left her in no doubts about his meaning.

She shivered in anticipation. "I look forward to those opportunities."

"As do I," Sabas assured her.

Aleeria glanced nervously at the door. "The sun has been down for half an hour, I can feel it. Growing up in this castle, I can always feel it. I must go and see her to see how she would like you prepared and to get your new House colors." She drew her overdress on and began to lace it.

Sabas sighed. "I know. I can feel it too. Our time is up for now."

Aleeria nodded and moved closer, finishing with her laces as she walked. She wanted to touch him, to kiss him, to savor these last moments before they were no longer alone, but she still had to say the words she wanted most to hold inside. "We're going to have to pretend none of this happened once we leave this room. We're going to have to go on as if we are friends perhaps, but nothing more," She was starting to choke on the words.

Sabas sighed heavily, wondering how he would conceal his regard for her once he was being watched again at all times. "I know. I've been thinking about that too. Your Mistress might not like it if she knew how much fun we've been having."

'Fun', her mind stumbled on the word and all its casual and transitory implications, but she forced her mind past it. "You'll have to earn her favor if you wish to see me again."

"I will. I do wish it," Sabas assured her. "What do I need to do to earn her favor and see you again?"

Aleeria offered a small smile as his words spread through her like sunlight. "Speak softly to her always, be respectful and obedient, and vigilantly hide your heart. Most of all, be certain you hear no sound more clearly than the sound of the Vampires speaking to you and always be respectful to _all_ of them. You represent so many of your people. Don't disappoint them." And don't disappoint me, she wanted to add knowing any ill behavior on his part might reflect back on her.

"I promise I won't disappoint. I'll do as you advise." He vowed. Aleeria was so close to him again now that they were nearly touching.

* * *

Sabas cursed as there was a knock at the door. Aleeria moved to the door and opened it, letting Lucian step into the room.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but I have some news you'll find interesting. It seems that Sabas is to be trained in combat and weapons after today by Kahn." Lucian announced.

"One of the Death Dealers," Aleeria noted, her voice distant and concerned. "I know who he is. Kahn serves the House of Marcus." She knew Khan indeed. He was the Death Dealer she pretended to fancy whenever Erika was around. Of all the ironies, she marveled. She wasn't sure how yet, but she felt certain that this would complicate matters.

"Yes, well Sabas's training will continue for the next several weeks, until Kahn deems him ready to officially take over his post as defender of The House of Marcus." Lucian continued.

Aleeria gaped at him. "Weeks? With Kahn? Will any of the other Death Dealers be taking part?" She was quite worried by this development. Kahn wasn't a monster, but plenty of the other Death Dealers were, especially Kraven. She shuddered at the thought of Kraven training _her_ Lycan.

Lucian nodded. "Weeks, but I think it will just be Kahn for now."

"I don't understand. Why the need to train? Plenty of Lycan guards are given no training because of their rapid healing abilities. Why would that change now?"

"Your Mistress wants to change that," Lucian explained in soothing tones. "She's saying it's because she wants a more skilled fighter protecting her house, but I think she's using this to set a precedent so all future Lycans of this new privileged class will be trained in this way. I was after all."

"How did you hear about this?" Aleeria demanded, twisting the hem of sleeve in an agitated manner.

"I was told by Khan himself. He came by to inform me that I will not be assuming my own duties hunting with the Death Dealers until Sabas is done with his training so I can continue to guard you during the day."

Aleeria paced restlessly. Something about this was still strange. It was an awful lot of preparation to protect a human; no matter how favored she was by Sabine. She made a mental note to ask her Mistress about it and soon, tomorrow preferably after she'd had time to think about it some more.

"If I could put in my thoughts," Sabas began. "It would be better for all Lycans in the long run if a prescient is set for some of us to be trained. I'm sure that from what Aleeria's said of her Mistress, that these trainings will be highly supervised and coordinated with her. I'm also hopeful that since she seems so interested in improving our welfare, she won't let them do any training that would cause permanent damage." He turned his attention to focus on Aleeria as if it was only the two of them in the room. "I'll be fine Aleeria. There's no need to worry. I heal quickly if nothing else."

Aleeria forced humor into her voice, not wanting Sabas to think she doubted his abilities as a protector and fighter. "Still, what was the point of getting you all cleaned up if you're just going to be rolling in the mud all over again?"

"Just think Fair Captor; that means in several weeks you'll have the distinct pleasure of cleaning me up all over again." Sabas replied, his tone tantalizing her senses with the scene it painted.

Aleeria nodded and smiled impishly at the thought before her face became serious again, her attention focused solely on him. "Be careful and listen to Kahn. I know him a bit. He's honorable. Beware of Kraven if he takes part in your training. Erika sees naught past his face, position, and lust for power, but he is dark and dangerous as Viktor, perhaps more so because Viktor loves his wife and daughter, whereas Kraven loves only power."

"I will keep my eyes open," Sabas promised her.

Aleeria nodded, satisfied as she was likely to be. "I have to go see Sabine now. Lucian will you escort me?"

Lucian nodded. "Of course."

Aleeria moved to Sabas and ran her hand over the side of his face. "We'll be back as soon as we can. I'd sleep some more if you can."

"I'll do that. I didn't actually sleep much before. I had plans to make." He and Aleeria shared a knowing smile at the inside joke. "If you can get some more food brought down that wouldn't be amiss. I've been hanging here for over a day and I'll need more food to recover my strength enough to stand for inspection."

Aleeria nodded. "I could use more food myself. I've been cleaning for an entire day after all." She shared another meaningful look with Sabas. "You're a lot of work you know."

"I hope you think I'm work well worth the effort." He teased back.

"So far, you seem to be worth an extraordinary bit of effort," Aleeria retorted, her gaze both warm and enticing.

"And that is the last of that sort of exchange you two can have for awhile." Lucian cut in. "When we come back, Sabine may be with us and she must not hear any such exchanges between you two, nor may any one else for that matter. You two need to make sure your interactions are limited to only polite conversation. Sabine might get the impressions from exchanges like the one you just shared that you behaved in a manner that was more familiar than she intended. That would be very dangerous for both of you, especially Sabas. Don't be foolish. If Sabine is upset with anything she thinks passed between you two, she may choose to take it out on Sabas while he is training. Accidents can happen easily and untraceably and there are a great deal of extremely painful things she could have done to him that would not leave lasting damage or compromise his function as a protector in the future."

Aleeria's eyes went wide at the implications.

"Lucian, you're scaring her," Sabas scolded sharply.

"Good," Lucian replied uncharacteristically pitiless. "You both need to be scared. You've spent a lot of hours in this safe environment, without anyone watching you or hearing you and it's made you feel safe. Well out there, it's not safe. It's very dangerous for both of you. Your relationship, whatever it is, cannot appear to be more than friendship until it has the approval of Sabine or there will be consequences I assure you. You should both be terrified at how they could use you against each other or how you could put each other in danger, not to mention yourselves. I don't want you to be naïve and have it cost you dearly when some healthy fear might have helped you avoid it."

Aleeria nodded. "I understand. You're right of course. Thank you Lucian." She saw Sabas starting to protest for her sake and help up her hand. "No, he's right. I know her and I know the inner workings of their world. Lucian is right and he's right to remind us this way. It's been easy to become too comfortable and familiar. That can't continue outside this room. Sabine made the rules of her 'contest' very clear. If we're going to win, we need to play by the rules."

Sabas nodded, but he was still troubled by the fear he saw quivering in her eyes.

"Rest for now," Aleeria urged him. "We'll be back as soon as we can."

* * *

Sabas nodded and Aleeria headed into hallway with Lucian, feeling the mask of her other life slide back over her like an old cloak: hiding who she was, how she felt and making her appear to be exactly what Sabine wanted.

Aleeria took a deep breath. "Thank you again."

"Sabas is my friend; I would not see him harmed," Lucian explained, his tone gruff.

"Nor would I," Aleeria replied fervently.

"I know," Lucian replied his voice gentler now. "That's why I didn't understate facts for you and just remind Sabas in private. I know you'd want to help keep him safe."

Aleeria checked to make sure they were not within what she thought earshot for Sabas was. "While we are still in the relative privacy of this hallway that leads me to a favor I would ask of you."

Lucian stopped, checking the hallway to be certain they were alone, and turned to her. "I'm listening."

Aleeria cleared her throat, choosing her words carefully. "I believe I have enough influence with my Mistress that I could arrange for you to train with Sabas for several hours in the evening. I have a very persuasive argument for it, but I won't ask her unless you would be willing to do so. I've watched the death Dealers train new recruits for many years with Erika. I know some of what could happen to him and I know that if he spars with you, he will be safer. You are highly favored by the Elders and will not be targeted. You can help to protect him."

"And who will protect you?" Lucian asked pointedly knowing that Sabas would try to skin him alive if he found out Lucian had agreed to such a request without concerning himself first with Aleeria's safety.

Aleeria took a deep breath knowing how difficult her solution to that problem would be for her. "During that time, I will stay by my Mistress's side at all times. She will ensure my safety while you train with Sabas." She knew how exhausting it would be to hide her feelings so carefully for such long periods of time while Sabine could watch her every moment like a hawk, but it would be worth the effort if it kept Sabas safer.

"If you can arrange for Sabas and I to train together, I will ensure his safety as best I can." Lucian assured her. "It would be my preference that he and I train together as well, but only if you are certain you will be safe,"

Aleeria nodded fervently. "Sabine will protect me. I will feel more at ease if I know you protect him. The hardest part will be being under constant observation, but I have many years of training in this. I can manage."

"Than if Sabine gives her permission, I will do so," Lucian promised.

"I owe you a great deal after tonight Lucian. I won't forget." Aleeria's voice was solemn as she said this, wondering idly who had stolen Lucian's heart. He must be quite adept at hiding it by now. She wondered if it was one of the male Lycans as there were no female Lycans and Aleeria knew all the female humans in the castle. She could not imagine Lucian would be interested in any of them. With the exception of Erika and Aleeria, every other human female that had been in the castle for more than a few years was quite homely in appearance, which is why they had survived so long and most were rather old.

"I know you won't. You are an honorable human." Lucian replied equally solemnly.

"And you are an honorable wolf."

They exchanged a smile and chuckle and then resumed their progress to Sabine's apartments. Aleeria left Lucian just outside the door and asked him to wait for her.

* * *

Once inside the chambers, Aleeria heard Sabine's voice call out to her. "I'm in my room Aleeria."

She felt anxiety begin to creep through her now that Lucian was no longer with her. Would Sabine know what had passed between her and Sabas just by looking at her? Aleeria forced calm into her breath and being before stepping into Sabine's chambers. "Mistress," Aleeria greeted, bowing deeply. "I have finished cleaning the Lycan as you requested Mistress. I have come for the House colors so he can be made ready for your inspection."

Sabine smiled warmly at her, "Excellent Aleeria. I trust he continued to be well-behaved for you."

Aleeria wondered how she remained upright, her legs felt like they were made of lead, but she managed to keep her heartbeat level through the sheer strength of her years of practice. "Yes, Mistress, very well-behaved. I have cleaned his clothes thoroughly. I can re-dress him before you arrive in those clothes or others if you prefer. When you unchain him, I can put dress him in our House colors."

Sabine sipped a goblet full of blood mingled with red wine. "I see no reason he needs alternate clothes unless you have strong feelings on the matter or the ones he had are in poor condition."

Aleeria shook her head. "No Mistress, they are well-oiled now. I think they will serve for awhile longer as long as his training doesn't destroy them."

"Marvelous. His over tunic for our house will cover his clothes for the most part and he should be comfortable in those garments when he is not on duty. I have his colors here." Sabine indicated a bundle of clothes on a table near the door. "You can take them down shortly with the key and unchain him."

"Mistress?" Aleeria was certain she had not heard that last part correctly.

Sabine continued on as if she had not noticed her lady-in-waiting's eyes turn to saucers. "Aleeria, do you feel comfortable taking responsibility for him? I trust from what you've said of him that he will not harm you."

"No Mistress, I'm sure he will do as I ask." Aleeria assured her quickly.

"Excellent. In truth after so many hours in restraints, he will likely be rather weak when you release him. If you would be so good as to unchain him, dress him, and get him some food, not necessarily in that order. I'll be down to inspect him in an hour or so. Be sure to get some food yourself as well. I would like our new guard to receive a better quality of food now that he will be serving in our House and it starts now."

Aleeria nodded. "Thank you Mistress."

"So Lucian told you that Sabas is to be trained tomorrow night," Sabine began, referencing Aleeria's comment regarding the durability of Sabas's attire. "Does that news distress you?"

Aleeria considered. "A little," she admitted. "Though I know Lycans are strong and heal quickly. I am pleased that you would wish him to be well-trained as out other guards Mistress."

Sabine nodded. "Worry not, dear child. His training will be carefully overseen by Khan. I trust Kahn to handle our new daylight guardian appropriately. Sabas's training will not be unduly harsh and he will recover from any injuries he suffers. I assure you that no silver will be used."

Aleeria smiled weakly. "I thank you for putting my foolish heart as ease Mistress."

"Of course my child," Sabine reassured Aleeria, her mellifluous voice wrapping around her like the comforting pull of satin. "It's only natural that you would feel some affection for the Lycan who saved your life. In truth, I harbor gratitude towards him for the same reason. As long as he comports himself honorably and obediently, he will be safe in my good graces. In any case, I do want him to be well-trained so he can be a better protector."

Aleeria relaxed visibly and took a seat at Sabine's invitation.

"I'm pleased you came up here to update me on your progress," Sabine continued, her manner more reflective of a mother speaking to a child than a Mistress to her servant. "I wanted to speak with you apart so you would feel comfortable to speak freely. I want to know how your time with Sabas is going."

Aleeria flushed. "I didn't know when you first showed him to me that you'd chosen the one who had saved me." She began.

Sabine smiled warmly. "I thought he would be an excellent choice to protect our house as he has unknowingly already done so when he saved you. Are you pleased with my choice?"

Aleeria smiled broadly. "Most pleased Mistress, thank you."

"And has he been cooperative with you? Respectful? Can we trust him to serve us well?"

"Oh yes, Mistress. Sabas has been very cooperative." Aleeria bubbled. "I think he will serve our House quite well. He is honorable and brave."

"What makes you say that little one?" Sabine asked lightly.

"He saved me even though I was nothing to him and he has done so before for others. He also has not tried to beguile me thought the temptation is no doubt great." Aleeria replied, hoping she hadn't said too much, but she wanted her Mistress to see that Sabas should be among her choices. It was true more or less. He hadn't tried to beguile her, until she had shown interest in being beguiled anyway and he had been respectful throughout all their explorations, which Aleeria felt spoke to the spirit of Sabine's wishes.

Sabine nodded. "I'm sure you are quite a temptation to him indeed. Aleeria, what are your personal feelings for this Lycan? Do you wish for him to be considered?"

Aleeria's whole being seemed to glow. "Oh yes please, Mistress. I have admired him for a long time now ever since that day he saved me. He has been good company while I clean him as well." She tried to sound more like a young girl fond of a protector than a woman enamored with a Lycan.

Sabine nodded, pleased. "Well then, if he serves well and you continue to favor him, then I think he should be among those considered. When we began discussing your future as a Lycan, he was one of the first I thought of since he has already taken care of you in the past. Do not let your past sentiment clouds your judgments though. Judge him for who his is now because eternity is an unpleasantly long time if you choose poorly.

Aleeria nodded. "Yes, My Lady. I will heed your advice."

"Good. Well then, you should get back to Sabas. I will be down to inspect in about an hour. Will that be enough time?"

Aleeria considered. While part of her wanted to buy Sabas and herself some time and provide them with a "proper opportunity" as Sabas put it, she didn't want to risk deception of any sort on something like this. As she had said to Sabas before, what was the point of risking all over a situation that would be alleviated soon enough on it's own as long as they both followed Sabine's wishes. "Yes, Mistress it should be about enough time if the kitchens are sufficiently timely. I'll have Lucian go fetch food as soon as we return to the room."

"Very good. I'll see you in an hour or so then." Sabine reached into her robes and removed a key. Then she handed it out to Aleeria. "Here is the key for the manacles. I am trusting you to use it appropriately."

"Yes, Mistress, of course." Aleeria bowed her head obediently.

"His House colors are in the front room on the table by the door," Sabine reminded her.

"Thank you Mistress." Aleeria bowed and retreated from the room.

When she reached the entrance to the literal House of Marcus, she nodded to Lucian who fell into step beside her. "Lucian, once we get back to the room, if you would be so kind as to lock us in and get more food for both Sabas and myself and return swiftly as you can. We don't have much time."

"Of course."

* * *

A/N: Next chapter chains come off that's why I posted them together. Enjoy!


	11. Lycan Unbound

A/N: The title speaks for itself, enjoy! Happy summer my awesome readers! BTW if anyone gets my play on words in the title for this chapter I will be super impressed.

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**Chapter 11: Lycan Unbound**

[On My Own, Vivian Wounded/ The Kiss- Elektra/ Saving Josh by Trevor Morris/Beautiful Disaster/Eternity and a Day, Vold Eyes/ Across the Stars]

After he could no longer hear the footfalls of Lucian and Aleeria, Sabas closed his eyes and tried to will himself to sleep. His over-active mind would, as usual, not cooperate. Sabas wished he could hear the Angel of the Night in here. Her voice always helped him to sleep. As soon as Aleeria left his presence, his thoughts seemed to buzz in his mind faster and faster, calming only when she returned. If this kept up, it would be a very long training period with Khan indeed.

Khan. Sabas noticed the way Aleeria's thoughts had turned inward for a moment when she said Khan's name and he began to wonder just how well she knew Khan. She had told him she had no aspirations of being a Death Dealer's woman as her friend Erika did, but her tone said that there was something more to her awareness of Khan then his simple presence in the House she served. Still, he didn't want to ask her about it. If he wasn't being paranoid, he wasn't sure he really wanted to know the answer.

He consoled himself in an odd sort of way by thinking back on her unexpected bout with jealousy and insecurity before Lucian had arrived. Sabas chuckled softly. To think that Aleeria would be suddenly so concerned over whether or not he had a wife before he was turned. Even if he had, his human wife would be quite dead by now. Then Sabas considered his own feelings if he knew Aleeria had been wed before coming to the castle. The rush of possessive jealousy that followed made him reconsider. Perhaps, if Aleeria felt even fractionally as draw to him as he felt to her, it was not so strange that she was concerned about the women he'd had before her. Nevertheless, it had been decades beyond count since he'd felt another woman's touch. Surely, she knew that. Didn't she? Lycans were encouraged to fight each other to relieve their tensions, particularly as there were no female Lycans to be had. Human females, on the other hand, didn't survive well with immortals of any sort no matter which appetites they were sating.

Then again, Sabas reasoned, Aleeria's entire concern might have had more to do with her own insecurities about her inexperience at pleasing a male then any feelings she might have towards him. It wasn't a thought Sabas cared for, but he knew it was a possibility. He, himself refused to define their connection. If he hadn't known Aleeria had been "wholly untouched" before him, wouldn't he wonder how he compared to all those males she had been with before him? Sabas was concerned with her regard for Kahn wasn't he, though he knew from her words that she had not known anyone's touch before his. Sabas went round after round with himself in his head before finally succumbing to a troubled sleep. He woke only when he scented his Fair Captor returning once more.

* * *

Lucian and Aleeria said nothing after leaving Sabine's presence until they were back in the hallway of the interrogation room. Lucian held up a hand and checked the hallway with eyes, nose, and ears. When he was satisfied, he lowered his hand and turned back to Aleeria. "What instructions did your Mistress give you?"

Aleeria pitched her voice barely at a whisper, knowing Lucian could hear her perfectly well at that volume. "I have one hour to make sure Sabas is dressed, fed, and ready to stand for inspection."

"How are you going to get him into that uniform? You'll need his hands free."

Aleeria glanced around. "That's not an issue. Timing is an issue."

"You have the key?" Lucian asked incredulously.

"I do. She is very clearly testing me with it. Now, my plan was to get Sabas dressed in his clothes before unlocking the chains, thus giving you time to get food. When you get back, you can help me get him down so I can feed him, and then I'll put him in his uniform."

Lucian shook his head. "Sabas has been chained up for over a day, much longer than you were in there with him. He won't be able to stand, much less feed himself once you release him."

Aleeria nodded in resignation, recalling that Sabine had said something to the same effect. "All right then, you give me five minutes to put on his pants and then help me get him down. I'll look after him while you get more food. There's bread leftover from lunch that I can feed him to help him start to get his strength back. And I can get his boots and tunic on too while we wait for you to get back."

Lucian smiled. "My, your mind works fast for a human."

Aleeria smiled back. "As a human surrounded by immortals, the rule is: think fast and well or perish. Now, let's hurry. We don't have much time."

Lucian held the door open for Aleeria and she moved swiftly into the room. "Sabas, we don't have a lot of time. I have only an hour to get you ready and fed before Sabine comes down."

Sabas came awake quickly as he heard the frantic pace of her heart enter the room. "I see. Well then, let's not waste any time. What can I do to help you?"

"Just hold still. I'm going to put you pants back on and then Lucian will help me get you down."

"You have the key?" He asked incredulously, a nearly perfect clone of Lucian's reaction.

Aleeria looked into his eyes, holding them. "I do. I'm going to unchain you in a few minutes. Now, let's get those pants back on."

Sabas chuckled, vibrating the chains. "I never thought I'd be in a situation where I would be excited about the prospect of you putting clothes back onto me, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't eager to get out of these chains."

Aleeria's mischievous smile almost hid her state of frustration that had been building steadily all day. "You're not the only one."

She moved quickly grabbing the warm, dry leather pants, supple from her efforts, off the table. Aleeria had to reach around Sabas quite a bit to get them on, her body pressed close to his, brushing against him while she worked. She smiled in an apologetic sort of way. "Sorry there's no time to linger," She murmured.

Sabas smiled at her. "So am I."

She fastened the pants down to his mid-thighs and considered the time. "I'm going to call Lucian in now. I can finish with your pants after we get you down while Lucian gets food for us."

The only part of that sentence that registered for Sabas was the part where he would be alone, unchained with Aleeria and likely locked in the room with her for at least twenty minutes at his estimation. His body became more alert at this news as he readied his limbs to be free once more.

Lucian came in almost as soon as Aleeria opened the door, both of them moving swiftly into position to get Sabas down.

Lucian stood under Sabas's right shoulder, ready to catch him as soon as Aleeria released the locks. Lucian tried to convince her to let him release the locks himself, but Aleeria would not be swayed. Sabine would scent the key carefully upon its return. Aleeria knew it was vital that she and she alone touch the key at all times or there would be hell to pay and in the castle that was often meant literally. The sort of hell that kept you awake all night for weeks of terror wondering what form the punishment would take until you exhausted yourself with it, let down your guard while foolishly thinking yourself beyond the statue of limitations on reprisal. Then and only then would Sabine strike. She preferred her victims to not know when she would strike so they could not defend themselves, could not be prepared, and could not brace themselves against the blow.

As Aleeria stood on the long bench from the table once more, unlocking the manacles one at a time, she could feel a tension building, an anxiety that threatened to tear the room apart. "Sabas I'm going to release your right hand and Lucian will help support you." She turned the key and moved swiftly to his left hand edging down the bench.

Sabas tensed his legs, bracing to catch himself as well as he could. As the second manacle released, Sabas dropped, not in a way that Lucian would catch him, but to his feet, like a cat jumping down from a wall.

For a moment, just a moment, Aleeria had a very real understanding that she was human and Sabas was not. His eyes looked feral now that he was free and she felt an instinctual terror for just a moment as she was intimately aware of how powerful he was. She could see his leg muscles coiled under the leather, ready to spring. A bolt of fear launched through her making her instantly ready to dodge and flee, but she held it in check, reminding herself that this was _her_ _Lycan_ and he wouldn't harm her. Then Sabas stood up and he wobbled a little on his feet, the feral look fading back from his eyes. As that look faded away, so did her sudden surge of adrenaline and Aleeria moved in to help Lucian guide Sabas to the other bench beside the long table.

Sabas noted her momentary look of fear and frowned. He should have just let Lucian catch him, but he thought that by catching himself, as he was perfectly capable of doing, he would save Aleeria some of her worry about his forthcoming training. He could see now that it had been a mistake. Once Lucian left the room again he would need to use well the time they had alone together to reassure her.

As soon as Aleeria and Lucian had Sabas settled on the bench Aleeria turned to Lucian. "You need to hurry. Go get food from the kitchens and return as quickly as you can. I shouldn't put on the uniform until after we've eaten so it doesn't get dirty."

Aleeria's moment of trepidation did not go unnoticed by Lucian either and so he held her eyes a moment longer after she spoke to him until she nodded that it was all right for him to go.

Lucian nodded. "I have to lock you both in again, but I'll be back soon." He toned the last word as a promise and a reminder to both of them and Sabas and Aleeria nodded, to show that they understood it as both.

Aleeria was back on her feet the moment she heard the door lock. She knelt in front of Sabas and began to work swiftly to finish re-buckling the sides of his pants.

Sabas chuckled. For a long moment, when she'd started to kneel in front of him, he let himself hope her intentions were considerably less practical. Aleeria looked up at him, confused for a moment and then she caught on to his line of thought and blushed deeply. Sabas saw her embarrassment, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to let my thoughts wander so, but I couldn't help myself."

Aleeria lifted a shoulder briefly, smiling back at him. "Think nothing of it. After the last few hours, I suppose it would be surprising if we had both not thought of it, but Lucian is right, we must be careful and we have little time."

"I know," he sighed. There were so many ways he'd rather use this precious time than talking about her possibly harboring fears toward him, but he didn't want any such fears to fester for weeks either, so he launched in. "Aleeria, before when you released me, you looked frightened. I didn't mean to scare you."

Aleeria looked up at him through her lashes. "I know. I'm sorry. I just have been so cautious around immortals all my life and for that small moment, my instincts to be wary of those much swifter and stronger than myself overrode me. I know you would not harm me. If you were going to, you would have before now."

Sabas closed his eyes a moment. It wasn't exactly the resounding vote of trust he'd hoped for, but it was something. He seemed to be living on 'something's lately. "Aleeria, I'd never hurt you. You know that. You're safe with me." He reached out to touch her, but sharp terrible tingling pain shot through his arm.

Aleeria looked up sharply as he winced in pain. "What's wrong?"

"I lost most of the circulation to my arms awhile ago. It's all right. They'll be better soon." He reassured her, hissing at the awful sensation.

"Let me just finish this up and then I'll see what I can do to help." Aleeria quickly bound his feet in strips of cloth before sliding them into his boots and then finished with his pants. Sabas marveled at her speed and efficiency. Then Aleeria sat beside him on the bench and tool his left arm and drew it to her. She began massaging his arms at the shoulder and then working her way down to his hand. When she had done this twice to his left hand, she repeated with his right. "So how did you manage to catch yourself when I released your chains?"

Sabas forced a smile through the extreme discomfort of his blood rushing back down his arms. He wished she was massaging his arms under much more comfortable circumstances. "This was not my first chaining," he gritted.

"Ah," Aleeria managed, suddenly very aware that Sabas was only half dressed. She was also acutely aware of the bulge of his furless tail concealed by the leather once more. After all, she had wrapped the leather around him only minutes before. She'd kept the buckles loose around his waist, letting the pants hang low on his hips, as she was unsure where to tuck all his sensitive parts and she didn't want to pinch anything. More than that, she knew if she'd taken the time to arrange anything with her hands, she would have lingered when she could ill afford to. Even worse, she would have had his scent on her hands, which would be damning once Sabine arrived.

"It was however," He continued, leaning closer, letting her tugging on his arm draw him closer to her, "By far the most memorable and infinitely the most pleasurable chaining I have ever experienced." The increased proximity of his hand to her body helped distract her from thinking about the other, less pleasurable times when Sabas had been bound in chains.

Aleeria's fingers slid up his bare arm, exploring the feel of his skin rather than seeking to bring circulation back into the flesh. His eyes had pinned her once more, but now Sabas was free and she was very aware of how little separated them. She was trembling, but she moved her face closer to his none the less, letting his eyes pull her closer, or was it his arms? She wasn't sure anymore, nor did she care. She felt his hand cup her hip and slide up to her waist. Aleeria moaned lightly. "Your arms feel better now?" She asked, her voice breathy.

"Much better, thanks to your efforts," Sabas replied, his low, silky smooth voice wrapping around her again. He gently touched his forehead to hers and as they had before when he was chained, they rubbed their faces against each other, eyes closed, lost in the sensation of nearness and connection. They began to rub the lengths of their noses against each other. Then their lips brushed just once and restraint was forgotten. Aleeria's hand slid up his arm and into his long hair while Sabas's other hand stroked the side of her face. They explored each other's mouths with lips and tongue, trying to be soft and gentle, but growing less so as the minutes wore on and their breaths became more ragged and mingled. Finally, they pulled back, their foreheads their main point of contact again as they caught their breaths.

"I had hoped we would have enough time now for me to start to repay my debts," Sabas lamented, panting.

"Are you so eager to be free of them?" Aleeria breathed.

"Certainly not, but I also am very aware that I would need a great deal more time to repay you adequately."

"It would seem we won't see much of each other for the near future." Aleeria replied, her voice shaking. "I don't think we'll have that sort of time for awhile."

"Don't worry Fair Captor, I won't forget. I'll simply be planning my repayment." Sabas assured her, his voice low and husky.

Aleeria's insides turned liquid. She'd experienced what he could accomplish with only a few hours of planning. If Sabas had several weeks of planning, she could only imagine the delights he might have in store for her.

"When they finish training me, you're Mistress will doubtless ask you to clean me again, so we'll see each other then if not sooner," he consoled.

"Probably not sooner," Aleeria admitted sadly. "It would be dangerous for me to visit you in the barracks. And I will have to stay with Sabine more closely if she accepts my request."

"What request?" He eyed her sharply.

"I asked Lucian to train with you at night if she'll allow it and I'll stay closer to her side while you two train. Lucian can still protect me by day, but I will feel better if you are not the only Lycan training with Khan."

Sabas shook his head, bringing his eyes up to meet hers. "_I_ would feel better if he were watching _you_ while I train."

"I will be safe with my Mistress. Please, accept this . . . for me." Aleeria pleased, her voice soft and coaxing.

Sabas nodded, giving in to her large blue eyes for what he was certain would not be the last time. "Very well, but you must promise to be extra careful."

"I will," Aleeria promised, relieved by his acquiescence. "And when you're done training and I've cleaned you up, you will keep watch over me."

Sabas smiled roguishly. "I look forward to that day Fair Captor." He traced her jaw with his finger.

Aleeria caught his hand in hers, pressing it to her lips. "As do I, but for now I must finish dressing you." She rose reluctantly, shifting her thoughts back to the practical. "Can you hear Lucian coming?"

"Not yet, but there's no point in being foolhardy," Sabas's tone was resigned, but tender as he said it.

"No, there isn't," Aleeria agreed. She stroked the side of his face with her hand and then crossed the room and brought his tunic over. "I would have given your arms and shoulders more of a massage after all those hours being chained up, but we just haven't the time."

Sabas grinned at her as she buckled the left side of his tunic. "I'm sure this is not the last time I'll be bound in chains for hours. Perhaps next time you'll have more liberty to do so."

Aleeria quirked a smile at him as she finished with his left side and moved to his right. "Perhaps," She teased, "If I feel so inclined to bestow more of my attentions on you, My Prisoner."

"I'll have to see what I can do in the meantime to try to sway you to bestow more of your good graces upon me then," He replied matching her tone.

"I'm sure you'll think of something," she replied saucily. Indeed, she could already see him plotting behind his eyes. She finished with his tunic and scanned the room. "Ah yes, your bracers; I almost forgot."

As Aleeria went across the room to get them, Sabas saw the cloth Aleeria had used to wash and pleasure herself and then him lying forgotten on the bench beside his thigh. Before Aleeria turned back from the drying table, Sabas folded and tucked the cloth into his tunic. In the coming weeks apart, he could scent her from the cloth and imagine their mingled scents soaked into the fibers were from their lovemaking and it would make the nights easier even if it only increased his hunger for the reality rather than the fantasy.

While he was standing, Sabas took the opportunity to adjust his leather pants and all they contained. Aleeria saw his hand reaching back out of his pants and then fine-tuning the side straps of his pants and felt her skin overheat. She wasn't sure why this moment seemed more intimate and erotic to her, but she decided that this might perhaps be worse than when he was in chains. At least in the hours before, she could have acted in some fashion upon her desires, but now they were both technically free, but bound by rules and well-founded fears.

Sabas heard the telltale flutter of her heart racing again as well as the scent of her renewed interest and he knew she'd caught him. "Sorry, I just needed to-"

"No need to explain," Aleeria replied hastily. "I really was, ah, uncertain how to proceed there, with your pants I mean, and I just hope you weren't too uncomfortable until you could, um, finish dressing yourself."

Sabas's eyes warmed. She was so adorable when she was flustered like this caught between her sense of propriety and her own desires. "Your efforts on my behalf were perfectly adequate, but much as I could adequately tighten a bodice, I'm sure the effect is more tailored when you do so yourself."

She laughed nervously. "Yes, I'm sure that's true." Though instead of genuinely considering the comparison he'd made, the words had her thoughts considering his fingers, now free to do as they liked, unlacing and adjusting her bodice and all it contained until she could hardly think straight anymore. Aleeria heard Sabas's stomach growl from across the room, giving her a welcome distraction. "My goodness it has been awhile since lunch hasn't it? We still have a loaf of bread from lunch if you're interested."

Sabas's eyes bored into hers. "Very interested," he replied in a low growl that left in her in no doubt of what he was interested in.

Aleeria cleared her throat, trying to calm her hormones. "If your arms are too tired, I could feed it to you while we wait."

"That sounds delightful," he replied in a low sensuous tone.

She had been trying to be helpful, but now she could see she had set a trap for herself and sprung it. Still, there was no backing out now. She would simply manage. She would have to become an expert in managing is they were to pass Sabine's muster.

Aleeria sat beside Sabas again, facing each other on the bench and broke the break taking a piece and moving it towards Sabas's mouth. He took the bread from her fingers sucking them into his mouth, licking her digits slowly before releasing them to chew the bread.

Aleeria started mentally calculating how much time it would take her to take his pants back off, have their fun, and get them on again before Lucian returned.

"Delicious," Sabas rumbled after he swallowed.

Aleeria swallowed hard herself and fed him another piece and then another, soft moans erupting from them both at each feeding. Sabas continued to use each bite of the bread as an opportunity to explore her fingers with lips and tongue letting her mind wander to what he could do to her under less innocuous circumstances. By the time half the bread was gone, Aleeria was nearly cross-eyed with want and Lucian's warnings seemed a very distant memory.

"Aleeria, you seem faint. I think you need some of this bread yourself," Sabas suggested, his tone innocent while his eyes were anything but.

Aleeria blinked at him, only half comprehending his words at this point. She felt like she was caught in a trance, a delightful trance.

"My arms feel much better," he continued. "Why don't I feed you what's left?"

Aleeria dimly saw herself hand him the bread, shaking her head lightly to clear it. This was not the time nor the place to forget the tenuous nature of their situation. Still, fair was fair. She had no doubts from that look in his eyes that Sabas knew exactly what he was doing to her at the moment. If he thought she was going to be the only one suffering, he was sorely mistaken.

Sabas tore off a piece of bread and moved it towards Aleeria's mouth, his smile playful. Aleeria, mimicking his earlier movements, wrapped her lips around his fingers, taking the bread, and sucking on his fingers each in turn before releasing him and chewing her food. Sabas made a low moan in his throat and gave her another piece. Aleeria took more time with his middle and index fingers this time, swirling her tongue around the tips with firm, even pressure. Sabas's eyes went nearly black as the sensation overtook him.

Sabas could smell her want and was vividly aware of his own desires. At the moment, all his thoughts were focused on Aleeria's lips and tongue and the other parts of his body he'd like to have her repeat her attentions to his fingers on. It was only Lucian's warning that stayed him from tossing the bread aside and covering her body with his own as they both seemed to want him to.

They continued this game until all the bread was gone. They both stared at each other and unconsciously looked around for more food, but finding none, turned back to each other. They both stared to move closer to each other on the bench, but then Sabas's ears caught the sound of Lucian's boots scraping over the stone hallway floor. He held up his hand in warning, putting a halt to any further activities. "Lucian is returning."

"Just as well," Aleeria sighed. "Too much longer in here by ourselves and I think we'd get into some real trouble."

Sabas raised an eyebrow on the verge of asking her just what sort of trouble she had in mind when Lucian came through the door with a tray laden with food.

Lucian looked at the pair of them, sitting near each other, but their clothing and persons' seemed composed even if his keen Lycan senses told a different story. He had expected he would need to peel them off of each other when he returned or at least would have found them in some obvious state of disarray, but their restraint impressed him. It boded well for the survival of their interest in each other. After all, if they were not sufficiently restrained, Sabine might very well decide to kill Sabas for taking advantage of her favorite handmaiden. "I have the food, so we can all eat something quickly before she gets here." Lucian explained unnecessarily.

Aleeria nodded. "Sabas, I mean no disrespect," she began, her tone all business once more, "but unless you are used to using tableware, you should let me feed you again. I'm not sure I'd have enough time to clean your hands thoroughly again if you eat with them and frankly I would get punished most severely if you are not impeccably clean when my Mistress arrives."

Sabas met her eyes and nodded. "No disrespect taken. Lycans are not permitted tableware in the cells so we are hardly proficient in their use. Besides, I didn't mind you feeding me so much the other times." The gleam in his eyes referenced the bread they had just devoured much as they wanted to devour each other.

Aleeria smiled at him, their glance sharing the private joke and took two of the plates from the tray Lucian brought in. She fed Sabas a bite of steak and then fed herself a bite as well using the same fork.

Lucian was rather amazed. He knew for a fact that no human or Vampire in the entire castle would share a utensil with a Lycan. The only person who might was his beloved Sonja and she would only do so for him in private. Lucian tried to picture Erika doing the same thing and nearly choked on his food with laughter. Erika would have thrown up at the very idea, she'd rather starve than share a plate or a fork with a Lycan, much less eat in their presence. Clearly, his warnings had made them comfortable letting him see this much of the bond they were forging, though he wondered if they even recognized the significance of the gesture. They were so wrapped up in each other at the moment, savoring the minutes before Sabine arrived, that they very well might not have thought anything of sharing a fork or spoon.

When the food was gone, Aleeria raced into action again, making sure Sabas's person bore no sign of having eaten anything ever and used the small brush and toothpaste to clean his mouth again. She also cleaned his hands once more, using the lavender soap to erase any trace of her scent and then did the same for herself.

Sabas put his bracers back on and Aleeria took the uniform meant for Sabas out. Sabine had only provided the over tunic for it at this point. The over tunic was blood red and bore the seal of Marcus in black ancient swirls illuminating the letter "M" across the chest and back. Aleeria had Sabas stand up and put the tunic over his head with his help as he was quite a bit taller than she was. Then she straightened it and placed the belt with pouches and dual frogging for a sword and a dagger around his waist. The frogging was empty for now and would remain so until Sabas passed his training. Aleeria knew this, as she had seen many Vampires pass the training and tests. Thinking of Sabas going through that same training sent shivers of worry through her again, but she forced them away. She could worry later and Lucian would protect Sabas during his training. All she need do was talk with Sabine about it when she arrived.

While Aleeria prepared Sabas for inspection, Lucian made himself more presentable as well to aide Aleeria's request that he should train with Sabas. When he was satisfied, Lucian excused himself to return to his watch of the hallway.

Sabas and Aleeria stared at each other, the tension palpable once the door closed.

"We likely have only moments." Aleeria reminded him in hushed tones.

"Then we should make them count." Sabas replied softly. He leaned down to her, one hand again lightly on her waist, the other cupping her cheek and kissed her. His kiss was gentle, not full of barely restrained passion as before, but just a soft, intense meeting of lips. He didn't want to leave any sign or mark that would bode ill for them both. He just wanted to leave her with a reminder of their time together that had nothing to do with lust and everything to do with an entirely different sort of need.

Aleeria melted under his touch, her left hand pressed against his chest, the fingers of her right hand brushing the ends of his hair, so silky after being cleaned and tracing the hard line of his jaw. She wanted to remember everything from this moment from the press of his body against her to way he felt under her fingers and the way his scent surrounded her.

The knock on the door came too soon. They pulled away and risked a final private smile before Aleeria made certain her dress and hair were perfectly arranged. When she was satisfied, she set about making final adjustments to Sabas's uniform, waiting anxiously for Sabine to enter.

* * *

A/N: I'm evil, I know . . . tell me what you think. More to come and well underway for a change.

**Warning: I am going to be away some in the next few months, so updates will probably continue to be more spaced out depending on inspiration and time. Also I am thinking of taking a very temporary break to write a bit more on my POTC fanfic soon, but I'll keep anyone who's interested in which project I'm working on updated with my profile as usual. **


	12. Return to the Night

**Luthien587**:

Chapter 10- Thanks for noticing and appreciating my efforts to interject some reality into the developing relationship. Honestly, some of it is about not only what frustrates me in a lot of other romance stories, but also the sort of love story I want to read, which is one I could believably interject myself into. It's hard for me to imagine myself in a romance in real life where everything is wonderful and falls magically into place. A love never tested holds no strength, no validity. I wanted to write a love story that required no suspension of disbelief beyond that some require when reading about vampires and werewolves. Personally, I prefer to believe in vampires and werewolves, so for me no suspension of disbelief is required.

I'm planning to explore Sabas's training and Sabine's feelings towards Lycans further in the coming chapters, though some of the mystery of Sabine's motivations will remain for awhile.

Chapter 11- I love that you see Aleeria so much the way I envision her on this end. It means I'm doing my job right. As long as she's a human, I wanted her to have all the benefits of that and all the downsides. I love the book series Dune and it has this quote that makes me think a little of how I'm building Aleeria's character:

_Thus spoke __St. Alia-of-the-Knife__: "The Reverend Mother must combine the seductive wiles of a __courtesan__ with the untouchable majesty of a virgin goddess, holding these attributes in tension so long as the powers of her youth endure. For when youth and beauty have gone, she will find that the place-between, once occupied by tension, has become a wellspring of cunning and resourcefulness."_

Basically, I want her to have to use her brain and her spirit while that's all she has so if she becomes more, she has more at her disposal than just powers. I get really tired of characters that have super powers as a crutch for lacking any other sort of abilities or talents. Your commentary on their dynamic in their world is dead-on for how I see it. Isn't that what makes a relationship amazing: defining the line between surviving and thriving?

I love that you jumped when Sabas reminds Aleeria that he is not just a tame puppy. It's so much fun for one thing to play on the differences between a Lycan and a human and their interaction with the world around them, but also, it's fun playing with the whole Lycan thing in general and expanding on it. I'm thrilled that you're appreciating my "furless tail" references. It just came to me and I couldn't stop chuckling with naughtiness, so I had to include it. Like I said it's fun to play with the whole Lycan theme.

I hope you do get around to reading the POTC fic. I'd like to work on it again soon, but for now, my head is back in this story and I think it's going to stay there in terms of fanfic for awhile anyway. I'm also trying to decide if the POTC fic needs a revamping/ overhaul or just more chapters. Again, I think (hope) the lesser response has more to do with the pairing and the sheer volume of POTC fanfic (more to compete with), but I'm biased.

**Taylorxtorniquet:** haha. I know. I was cheering when I wrote that part too. It took me so much longer to get to it than I thought. Now the real fun begins. You'll see hints in this chapter, but then I've been leaving bread crumbs all along. That's all I'm saying for now . . . Happy reading.

**Soaring hawk:** You're most welcome. Next chapter will get more into the training Sabas will be undergoing.

**Blueangelsvntn**: Ah, Sabas is so good at planning and strategizing in his own way . . .

**Stephm**: Welcome to the party. I'm glad you're enjoying, here's the next piece.

**Maggie 56: **Sorry I've been remiss about reading your latest chapters. It's been a rough couple of months, but I plan to indulge soon and let you know how I enjoyed it.

**Ardimus: **Thanks for continuing to kick my ass to work on revising this in the real world. It's been a really lovely escape to get back to. As always, you push me to "keep moving forward" in my writing and beyond.

* * *

A/N: Things are going to get much more complicated. You'll see what I mean. Also, "Lycan Unbound" was a reference to "Prometheus Unbound" by Percy Bysche Shelley (husband of Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein). Percy was an amazing poet and philosopher and wrote Prometheus Unbound about Prometheus, a Greek god who was punished by Zeus for giving fire to mortals. Prometheus was chained to a mountain where he had to endure his liver being eaten every day by an eagle and then painfully regenerating each night. Mainly it was a play on words, though Sabas is a mortal who in a roundabout way is chained up because he saved the life of a mortal though it's not really a punishment in this case.

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* * *

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**Chapter 12: Return to the Night**

[On My Own, Vivian Wounded/ The Kiss- Elektra/ Saving Josh by Trevor Morris/Beautiful Disaster/Eternity and a Day, Vold Eyes/ Across the Stars] [How Can I not Love You]

The knock on the door came too soon. They pulled away and risked a final private smile before Aleeria ran her hands appraisingly over herself, making certain her dress and hair were perfectly arranged. When she was satisfied, she set about making final adjustments to Sabas's uniform, waiting anxiously for Sabine to enter.

Lucian opened the door a few minutes after his knock, leaving Aleeria in no doubt that he had intended his first knock as a sort of warning. She was very grateful for it and made a note to spend part of the next few weeks finding a way to show Lucian how much she appreciated all his efforts on her behalf. Perhaps she could weave him a blanket to soften his sleeping pallet. At the very least, weaving a thick blanket would be a project to help keep her busy. Sabas would no longer be working in the yard for her to watch and Lucian would be participating in Sabas's training, so she would not be able to watch Sabas's training either unless Sabine decided to observe. Aleeria would need things to keep her mind busy and occupied so she didn't worry herself into a nervous breakdown.

Sabine stepped into the room, carrying with her a regal air of magnanimity. Two of the House Guard and the Death Dealer Khan stepped inside the room alongside her.

Aleeria curtsied. "Good evening Mistress, I present to you the Lycan, Sabas, cleaned as per your orders, My Lady." She indicated Sabas with a wave of her hands as if she were showing off a prize stallion.

Sabine's face was all smiles and delight, "Why Aleeria, I wouldn't have recognize him if you hadn't told me. You did an excellent job, Aleeria."

"Yes, I cleaned him most vigorously." Aleeria assured her.

Sabas used every ounce of willpower not already engaged in keeping him from gathering Aleeria into his arms and making a break for the front gates and stifled a conspiratorial chuckle. Yes, her attentions had been vigorous indeed, though it was vital Sabine never know the full extent of it.

To the great irritation of Sabine, Khan, and Sabas, the other Vampires seemed to have considered the unintended double entendre in Aleeria's words and their snickering caused Aleeria to blush deeply. Sabas's eyes lit with fury at the audacity of these Bloods daring to think of Aleeria in such a manner. He, at least, had cause to think such thoughts. Sabas was consoled only because he noticed Sabine and Kahn seemed to share a similar thought process.

"Tristan, Vakko, go stand guard at the end of the hallway and see that we are not disturbed," Khan barked. The two Vampires exchanged a resigned and chagrinned look and left the room. "I am sorry, My Lady. They know better than to speak in such a manner in your presence."

Sabine nodded in a regal, approving manner at Kahn. "Thank you Khan. See to it that you make them understand that they are not to speak that way in Aleeria's presence either, whether I am there or not. You may use whatever method you like to drive this point home for them."

"Yes, My Lady. It shall be done," Khan vowed.

Sabas saw the grateful way Aleeria's eyes turned to her Mistress and he understood that there was a bond between the two of them that he should not underestimate. Certainly, its presence was understandable. Sabine's protectiveness toward Aleeria was obvious and openly known and Aleeria clearly appreciated the full magnitude of what that meant and how unusual it was. Sabas also understood all too well from the steely look in Sabine's eyes that the guards she'd sent away would not so much as consider another inappropriate thought in Aleeria's presence after they'd been punished enough to satisfy Sabine. He almost felt sorry for them. Almost.

One particular aspect of this exchange, however, relieved Sabas's concerns about Aleeria's safety while he trained with Lucian. If this was how vigilantly and thoroughly Sabine guarded Aleeria's well-being, he had nothing to be concerned about. Clearly, if anyone gave Aleeria a look Sabine felt was inappropriate, she might just rip their eyes out. Since the offending party would likely be immortal their eyes would regenerate, but the initial loss and period of regeneration would be painful enough to ensure the offense was not repeated. Sabas had to admit, he approved of Sabine's style.

Sabine's voice cut through Sabas's thoughts. "Excellent. Moving on. Aleeria, I'd like to speak with you a moment in the hallway." She gestured to the doorway.

Aleeria nodded, "Of course Mistress." She wondered if Sabine knew that Sabas was likely to hear every word anyway and more than that, Aleeria wondered if she should mention it. She didn't want to lie, but Aleeria knew Sabas was likely to see it as a betrayal if she offered that information freely. In the end, she decided not to unless Sabine asked about it directly. She followed Sabine into the hallway.

Sabine nodded to Lucian who stood by the door. "Lucian, would you be so kind as to go back inside and wait a moment with Kahn and Sabas? Thank you."

Lucian nodded curtly and did as she asked. It was a true testament to the amount of trust Sabine felt for Sabas and Lucian that she would allow them to remain in a room with Khan when they outnumbered him, even if Khan was armed while they were not.

* * *

Sabine turned to Aleeria, warmth radiating from her even while she pointedly turned her back to the guards at the end of the hallway who had been foolish enough to displease her. "Aleeria, I commend you once more on a job well done. Sabas looks almost handsome after all your hard work."

"Yes Mistress. Thank you Mistress." Aleeria bowed her head, returning all too quickly into the obedient shell she lived in.

"Has he continued to behave himself since you unchained him?"

"Oh yes, Mistress he has comported himself very well even when Lucian had to leave us to fetch for food."

"That is good to hear. I expect no less you understand, but it is still good to hear." Sabine continued, her tone leaving no doubt as to the fate of those who disappointed her.

"Of course Mistress; he takes direction quite well. I am certain his behavior will continue to meet with your approval." Aleeria reassured her.

"As long as his performance continues to please you as well, we shall keep him on this path and see how he fares."

Now it was Aleeria's turn to stifle giggles regarding Sabine's wording. Aleeria's mind desperately wanted the drift into envisioning all possible interpretations of Sabas's performance and how it might please her well, but she needed to stay focused, Sabine was speaking again.

"Do you feel more comfortable around males after this experience?" Sabine asked, curious.

Aleeria recalled that this was one of Sabine's reasons for wanting Aleeria to bathe Sabas in the first place. "Yes Mistress. Well, I feel more comfortable around Sabas in any case."

Sabine smiled in a moment of female empathy. "Yes, it is different with each one, but I'm sure your comfort level will increase as this process of grooming a privileged class of Lycans continues. On that note, do you think Sabas is ready to begin his training tomorrow evening?"

"Absolutely Mistress; I have one request on that matter though."

"Yes?" Sabine replied, her interest keen.

Aleeria took a deep breath and kept her tone calm and reverent. "Could Lucian train with Sabas? Lucian told me that he is to be trained as a daylight hunter for the Death Dealers. Could that training coincide with Sabas's training?"

"I intended for Lucian to protect you while Sabas is being trained," Sabine replied, her tone guarded.

"I know that Mistress, but Lucian could still guard me when he is not training and then Sabas would have another Lycan to spare with so Kahn could instruct them on form and so forth." Aleeria tried to keep her concerns from her voice as she spoke, keeping her points logical and reasonable.

Sabine considered, recognized as any female would, the desire to protect someone you cared for and Sabine had long known that Aleeria cared for Sabas. The request was in itself was rather remarkable though. Sabine could never recall Aleeria asking for much of anything for herself, she merely accepted gratefully what was offered. Sabine could hardly refuse her under such circumstances. "Of course, that seems a fine point Aleeria. I will make the arrangements. You will need to stick quite close to me while they are both training though."

Aleeria bowed her head, hiding the triumph that leapt into her eyes. "Of course Mistress; I will do whatever you ask."

Sabine opened the door and called Lucian and Khan out into the hallways to wait with Aleeria. "I'm going to have a word with Sabas a moment. I'll let you know when you may come back in."

Aleeria nodded and moved away from the door prepared to make every appearance of waiting patiently. In reality, she felt herself go to ice. After Sabine's little chat with her, it seemed unlikely that she'd do anything to Sabas, but if she decided there was more to the story of how their afternoon had gone she was much more likely to extract it from Sabas than her. Beyond that, Sabine could handle one Lycan that was unable to shift without the aid of weapons.

* * *

Sabine closed the door to the interrogation room behind her and the clicking sound of the door being securely shut seemed ominous to Aleeria's nervous heart.

Once inside, Sabine's smile faded, her eyes turning predatory, assessing. "You seem to have made quite an impression on my hand maiden once again, Lycan. She assures me that you have in no way attempted to beguile her and while I believe her, because she cannot lie to me, the tension between you two is such that I could cut it with a sword. I won't ask for your assurances of your own behavior. As I said, I trust Aleeria's word though many feel it is foolish of me to do so, to trust the word of a human. They forget that to those of us who can hear the beating heart, there can be no lies." Sabine paced in front of Sabas slowly, watching his every movement whilst she spoke. "I _will_ tell you that if you choose to pursue a path of earning the right to be chosen as her life mate, I demand that you treat her with the utmost respect and comport yourself honorably with her. I was fond of her mother and am fonder still of her. As guard to our House, one of your duties during the daylight hours will be to protect her, even from yourself."

Sabas met Sabine's eyes. "I promise to _continue_ to do so."

"Good." Sabine noted his emphasis on the word 'continue' and smiled smugly. She had chosen well. This Lycan was very protective of Aleeria, and would doubtless do anything to ensure her well-being. Beyond that, it gave substantial weight to Sabine's theory about the ability to control and inspire this new privileged class of Lycans. "Keep in mind that you are far stronger than she is. I demand you recall that fact at all times in her presence and are highly conscientious not to harm her even unintentionally. Your eligibility to be chosen will depend on the quality of your service as well as Aleeria's interest in you. Do not be foolish enough to think you will be the only one vying for her interest, however."

* * *

Before Sabas could ask what Sabine meant by her last comment, she moved to the door, inviting Aleeria, Khan, and Lucian back into the room.

Her icy tones she'd used when speaking to Sabas melted into something warm and honeyed. "Aleeria, you may come back in. Sabas has met with my approval." Lucian, Aleeria, and Saabs released a collective breath in the room before Sabine continued. "I am going to return to my chambers now. Khan, I expect you to see to the disciplining of those guards _tonight_."

"Yes, My Lady." Khan replied dutifully.

"Aleeria, if you feel comfortable being left solely in the company of Sabas and Lucian, I will leave you here to gather your things and then return to our House. Lucian, you and Sabas should come with her to protect her and so she can lead you to Khan who will assume responsibility for your training. Aleeria, you have had an exceptionally long day, once you reach our House I want you escorted into my presence. Then before they leave with Khan, Lucian and Sabas shall check your rooms and seal you into your tower so you may get some sleep. Is that understood?"

"Yes, My Lady." The males chorused with Aleeria.

Sabine gave them a rare smile of regal satisfaction. "Aleeria, are you comfortable with these arrangements?"

"Yes, My Lady, perfectly at ease." Aleeria replied.

"Good, then I leave you to it. Aleeria don't be long in finishing things up here. I want you to rest soon before you fall asleep on your feet."

"Of course Mistress; thank you Mistress." Aleeria curtsied obediently.

* * *

Once Sabine and her retinue left the room, Aleeria allowed herself her grin of triumph. She turned to Sabas. "Did you notice that she used your name to address you this time?"

Sabas smiled back at her. "I did actually. It was rather surprising."

"It is a mark of her new-found esteem for you that she does so now," Aleeria clarified. "Don't waste it."

"I won't," he promised. On impulse, he took her hand and kissed it. "I will serve well Fair Captor. Now, what can we do to help get you back to your quarters swiftly and safely?"

Aleeria felt her senses to a pleasant but thought drowning swirl before she managed to focus and glance around the room. "The bath needs to be drained, but you should remove your tunic first. I can gather the other items swiftly enough myself, but the tub would be far too heavy for me to manage expediently."

Sabas and Lucian nodded and went to work, all three of them moving quickly, highly aware that Sabine would be mindful of how many minutes their efforts took. When the room was tidied to Aleeria's satisfaction, she nodded at them and they moved towards the doorway.

Before they could open it to leave, however, Aleeria held up her hand. "Sabas, there is something I more must say. I must act a certain way to survive in that world out there, just as you will, just as Lucian does. Please try not to hold anything I say in the presence of those we do not call friend against me. Please know I do and say what I must to ensure my survival and now yours."

Sabas gathered her in her arms as he'd longed to during so many of their other similar conversations. He stroked her long, silky hair and murmured reassurances to her. "I will remember Aleeria. Please do the same for me."

Aleeria nodded against his chest. "I will." She held onto him a minute longer, savoring before reluctantly moving out of his embrace. "We must go now. Sabine will suspect if we tarry much longer."

They headed out the door Lucian in front and Sabas walking just behind Aleeria, both of them on alert. Aleeria noticed as she observed her honor guard that Lucian walked upright and confident, while Sabas, used to the life of a lowly slave for so many decades, walked hunched over, head bowed even as he searched the shadows all around them for dangers. Aleeria turned back to him a moment. "Sabas," She whispered. "Walk with your head held high, shoulders straight, gait sure. When you wear that uniform, you are a guard of the House of Marcus and you should walk proudly."

Sabas smiled at her, amused. "Yes, Fair Captor." He paused a moment considering. "What should I call you while in this uniform?"

Aleeria considered. "Lucian calls me Aleeria when it is just the two of us, but in front of others Sabine has Lucian call me Lady Aleeria. The Vampires of our House call me Sabine's Lady as in her Lady in Waiting or simply Aleeria."

"That's because she considers you more valuable than me." Lucian cut in. "If she had her way though, I think all the Vampires of the House would address you the same, as Lady Aleeria. She prefers your company to theirs to be sure."

"I was surprised she became so furious with the Bloods," Sabas cut in.

"Vampires," Lucian corrected harshly. "You cannot use that sort of language when you move in their world and don't forget it for a second. Mistakes are very costly."

Sabas nodded in respect at Lucian's correction. "Speaking of costly, those Vampires . . ."

"Are going to get some vile work detail for awhile if they are very lucky," Aleeria cut in. "My Mistress does not tolerate males speaking crudely before females of any station. She believes it breeds the violence that occurs all too commonly towards my kind both mortal in particular and female in general."

"I'll mark that as well then," Sabas promised, noting the way Lucian and Aleeria both anticipated his questions before he could finish them. He wasn't entirely sure if it was irritating being interrupted or entertaining watching how well Aleeria and Lucian worked together now that they were out in the world of the vampires. A small part of him started to become a little jealously suspicious, but he quashed it. Sabas knew well where Lucian's heart lay and Aleeria clearly knew it lay with someone even if she did not know with whom.

They moved quietly through the hallways, all of them thoroughly exhausted now that their ordeal was over. They didn't speak further. Sabas and Lucian needed all their attention focused on keeping Aleeria safe. When they arrived and Sabine gave her nod of approval, Aleeria put her cleaning supplies away in the main supply closet for their part of the castle, and then let Lucian lead them to her tower.

Sabine arranged for Aleeria to have this particular tower not only because it could only be accessed from within the House of Marcus, but also because to enter, you had to go behind a tapestry, down a hallway flanked by windows, up stairs, to a doorway the led along a fully exposed walkway to the door at the base of the tower. No one without Sabine's trust would get so far into the House and no one with sensitivity to sunlight would get farther than the first hallway by daylight. Lucian guarded at the base of the stairs within the tower itself when he was on watch.

In short, Aleeria's tower was the safest place in the entire castle for a mortal. As was custom, Lucian went through the tower thoroughly, Sabas observing his process closely, to make sure he was familiar with the procedure for securing Aleeria's sleeping chambers.

Aleeria felt a little self-conscious about Sabas seeing her bed chambers, but reminded herself that this would soon be his responsibility alone to ensure her safety not to mention that he would see a good deal more of it if he became her life mate. As she watched them, a thought occurred to her, "Sabas, where will you put your things while you train?"

Sabas looked at her confused, "My things?"

"Your possessions," Aleeria elaborated. "You won't be sleeping with the other Lycans ever again unless you get into serious trouble, so what will become of your possessions while you train?"

Sabas laughed softly at her kind thought. "Lady Aleeria, you have cleaned everything I own in the world. All I have are the clothes on my body."

Aleeria stared at him, startled. "Truly?"

Sabas smiled at her warmly. "Yes, but do not trouble yourself. I've never needed much."

Aleeria nodded, making a note to make both her protectors blankets as soon as she found the time as long as her Mistress would allow her access to a sufficient quantity of wool. She might not be able to show her regard for Sabas openly, but she could find other ways to let him know she cared for him.

"Come," Lucian interrupted. "The tower is secure. It is time for you to get to sleep little human."

Aleeria nodded, fatigue starting to get the better of her. She walked them down to the door, wishing futilely that she and Sabas could say goodbye properly once more. She saw Lucian hesitate by the door, but felt the timing was unwise. She shook her head at Lucian. "You've done enough for one day my friend. We shouldn't tempt the fates further." She turned to face Sabas. "I will eagerly await the completion of your training."

"As will I," Sabas replied, a roguish gleam in his eyes.

"We will honor you trust in us Lady Aleeria," Lucian replied formally, kissing her hand.

"You have placed great faith in us. We will not disappoint you, Fair Captor." Sabas replied, kissing her hand in turn. He lingered over her hand a little longer than was proper, giving her hand the attention he could not bestow on her lips at the moment his tongue sliding out discreetly to trace the crease between her clasped fingers.

Aleeria nodded mutely, her heart fluttering at the electric contact of his lips on her hand.

"Close that door now little human and secure the lock," Lucian commanded, "Just as you always do."

Aleeria nodded and reluctantly closed the door sliding the cross bar into place. She wished she could watch them depart from her window at the top of the tower, but part of Lucian's duties was to listen for the sound of her securing her door.

* * *

Alone in her tower, Aleeria leaned against her door in a private war with herself. Oh, how she wanted to throw it open and run after them, but to do so would not only anger Sabine greatly, it would hardly be attractive for her to throw herself at Sabas. Sabine had told her to remember that she was the one being sought after and that she should let _him_ prove himself to _her_. Aleeria walked up the steps to her sleeping pallet the quarter moon, glowing before her, reflecting that Sabas would watch that same moon as he fell asleep.

The idea of being parted from him entirely for who knew how many weeks was almost unbearable. She would not even be able to watch him from her tower since by night, she would have to be always by Sabine's side and by day, Sabas would no longer be toiling in the yard with the other Lycans. That part was something Aleeria wanted, for him, very much. She wanted it even more so because when he was fully trained, he would guard her as Lucian had, nevertheless, the wait during the lengthy training period stretched out endlessly before her.

'But,' Aleeria reminded herself, 'If we both want it enough and try enough, I can have him in the end. That's a possibility I didn't have yesterday and that's a huge step forward. After all, yesterday Sabas was a fantasy and today, he's kissed me and touched me and there is the promise for more.'

Aleeria settled herself on her windowsill and sang into the night before retiring. Tonight, her song was full of a different sort of longing. She sang of lovers who longed for each other for many years but upon finally meeting, were parted by fate for a time before being reunited. She sang of that in-between time and the yearning that filled the space there. She sang of falling asleep, each lover pretending the other was there beside them, holding them in the darkness until the distance between them closed and imaginings became realities.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sabas and Lucian made their way to quarters in the lowers levels of Marcus's wing of the castle. Generally, Lucian slept in quarters by his blacksmith's shop, but Sabine insisted he stay in her House's quarters while Sabas trained, at least at first. Viktor was away seeing to affairs at another fortress in the control of the coven, which made Sabine's preference possible.

When the Sabas and Lucian were well out of earshot of the last vampire patrol, Lucian turned to his old friend. "So you and Aleeria? How did that happen?"

"Animal magnetism," Sabas replied, deadpan.

As non-answers when it was one of his better ones and Sabas and Lucian enjoyed a good laugh over it.

Lucian and Sabas settled into their new quarters on the ground level where they could see the moonlight through their narrow window. Sabas lay back going over the day's events and thinking about Aleeria. Sabas heard the Angel of the Night singing her sweet song and imagined it was Aleeria singing him to sleep, telling him a love story that paralleled their own tale. Not for the first time, he marveled at how well the mysterious voice's song mirrored the one in his heart.

His mind wondered back to all the days before that he had watched Aleeria for hours from the yard while he shifted rock, built walls, or whatever else the Bloods demanded he do. Had she been watching him for all those years since the day he saved her? He'd hoped so before, but now he wasn't sure he wanted to know for certain what the truth of the matter was. Now that there seemed to be something real between then, he'd rather hold onto his illusion that she had been watching him as it served to make the day's events feel more significant. He needed to believe that she'd been watching him just as he'd been watching her more than he needed to know the truth. Still, she'd remembered him and that was a surprise all on its own, so there was hope that she had indeed watched him and that was enough for now. He hoped she would miss his company while they were apart. He had never gone a day without watching her even if it was, until today, always from afar. Sabas knew he would yearn for her more now. He also knew that if nothing else, she would desire him while they were apart. If Aleeria didn't miss his company, she would at least burn for him so he had a place to start.

* * *

A/N: Yeah, things are about to get really complicated. If you've been noticing my breadcrumbs, you should spot what's coming easily enough. You'll see what I mean.


	13. Bloodlines

**Dyanasty Artemis: **Welcome and I'm so psyched you loved my story so much! It helped me push on with getting this chapter out.

**Maggie 56: **I'm inching my way back into things. I hope to catch up on my reviews of some of my favorite stories soon.

**Soaring hawk:** There will be a description of the castle layout and the training in the next chapter. I'm really sorry this took so long. Writing with a broken heart is just as hard as waking up with one as it turns out. Erika make trouble? Hehe of course.

**midnight84118: **Welcome. I'm going to keep working on this as long as the story keeps coming.

**blueangelsvntn: ** Well some hints will be reveled soon and others, not so much, but there's lots more to come.

* * *

A/N: I'm sorry this took forever. Those of you reading my profile know that I had personal hell that got in the way. I'm still extricating myself from said hell, but I plan to keep working on this as much as I can. I've barely written all summer since the descent into hell (if anyone really wants to know what happened check out my profile). I hope you enjoy and I wish this chapter hadn't taken so bloody long to polish up. Thanks for not giving up on me.

* * *

**Chapter 13: Bloodlines**

[Becoming One with the People/Legend of the Seeker, Braveheart, & Robin Hood Soundtracks]

Aleeria slept through the remainder of the night and through the next day until shortly before sunset. She was pleasantly exhausted from the long day before and her dreams were filled with Sabas. Aleeria had no desire to leave them as he was doing such wonderful things to her in them, but her internal clock told her it was time. While she slowly drifted into awareness, she swore she could still smell him in the room, could still feel Sabas's presence from the night before when he'd secured her home, making sure she would sleep in safety. She looked out her window at the yard below. Aleeria could see Lycans working hard to construct a new central building for the castle with an elaborate underground crypt. A wistful pang struck her knowing that Sabas would not be among them. She wouldn't be able to see him so easily or discretely until his training was complete. She wondered where he was. It was still light out and so Sabas could not be training with Khan yet.

Aleeria laughed to herself as she woke fully and calculated the hour by the angle of the sun. She could not believe she'd slept so long. Her protector had certainly tired her out thoroughly. She could only imagine how skillfully he would do so without the limitation of restrains between them. If their all too brief interlude just after she'd unchained him was any indication, Sabas was capable of so much more than she could even imagine.

She took a cloth and poured a pitcher of water into a basin that sat near her bed and ran the damp cloth over herself, wiping away the scent of her straw pallet and sleep. After she dressed, Aleeria was about to go downstairs to walk back to Sabine's rooms, when there was a knock on her door. She glanced through a knothole in the door and saw Lucian. Hoping Sabas was with him, Aleeria rapidly opened her door. However, when she threw open the door, only Lucian stood before her. Aleeria looked past him hopefully, but they were alone on the rampart. Lucian saw her eyes dim as she realized he was unaccompanied.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you Aleeria. It's only me. Sabine sent a message before she retired yesterday for me to escort you through your duties until she awoke."

Aleeria nodded. "I am ready."

"I will take you to get your breakfast and then you can begin your chores."

Aleeria nodded mutely. She wanted to ask him about Sabas's whereabouts, but she thought it strange that Lucian hadn't explained already, so she kept her questions to herself, experience reminding her to be cautious about asking questions.

Lucian smiled at her, seeing her mind working so busily behind her eyes, he answered the questions she was obviously trying not to ask. "He wanted to come but Sabine did not ask him, so we felt it best to follow the spirit of her request. I assure you that nothing less than my warnings kept him from being here now."

Aleeria smiled warmly back at him, trying to conceal her pleasure at his words. "Thank you Lucian. I had wondered. Clearly, my wonderings were misplaced."

Lucian smiled, roguishly letting her know he'd been teasing her by not telling her about Sabas's absence immediately. He recalled all too well how moments stretched to hours in those heady first days of connection. "Come on. Let's get you some food before your Mistress awakens." In truth, he'd delayed slightly, in telling her of Sabas's absence to test her as much as to tease her to see how she'd react. Her reaction didn't disappoint him as he could see the longing in her eyes and that fact made him glad for his friend.

"Give me a moment to make sure my candles are out," she asked as she turned back into her tower. In truth, she wanted a moment to bury her feelings back under her features where they would not be seen. What she felt for Sabas was private and she wanted neither to share those feelings with the undeserving nor to endanger she and Sabas both with carelessness. When she felt her features relax and her pulse slow, she returned to where Lucian still stood, waiting. If he noticed anything different about her after she had concealed her emotions, he didn't let on.

They headed down to the kitchens. Aleeria usually ate down in the kitchen with the other human slaves. The vampires tended to eat only once a day and usually as their mid-night meal. Aleeria was kept far from such things of course. Even Sabine did not eat in front of her. When Aleeria woke early enough, she often ate with Erika before watching the Death Dealers mount up from the ramparts of the castle. She was grateful that she'd slept in far too long to catch Erika this morning. Aleeria had wanted to revel in the pleasant afterglow of her dreams for awhile longer even if she had to make sure none of it was outwardly visible. There would be time enough for Erika's prattle soon enough.

Aleeria ate in silence with Lucian. There was nothing of importance that could be discussed openly in the kitchens and neither of them had anything unimportant to discuss as their thoughts were filled with persons not in their immediate company. After their plates were cleared, Lucian took back Aleeria upstairs. Once they were in the relative privacy of the hallways, Lucian murmured a request he'd been rolling around in his mind since the night before.

"Aleeria, could you do us a favor and find out what you can about the punishment of those guards from last night and tell me when next I see you. Laughing over their fate will be a fun story to entertain us." He didn't to explain who "us" was. Aleeria knew Lucian referred to himself and Sabas.

Aleeria smiled, catlike, "consider it done."

Lucian nodded and escorted her back to Sabine's side and then took his leave.

* * *

Aleeria watched him leave wistfully, feeling a loss when he'd gone. It wasn't so much the loss of his company; so much as it was that when she was around Lucian now, she felt that much closer to Sabas, because Lucian was his friend. More than that, Lucian was the only other person who had any idea that she had that sort of regard for Sabas and that shared secret also made Sabas feel nearer when Lucian was there.

She shook her head. She was in trouble indeed if she was already so desperate for Sabas's company that Lucian's company could ease it. It would be a very long separation indeed at this rate. Thinking about this and her thought the night before to weave blankets for Sabas and Lucian, she turned to Sabine, who was practicing her calligraphy at a large oak desk. "Mistress, I was thinking that I need to find an activity to keep myself occupied while I spend more of my time inside our quarters. Would it be all right if I wove some blankets to keep myself busy?"

Sabine smiled sympathetically. "Of course you may. It would be good for you to keep your hands busy while you're cooped up."

Aleeria thanked her and then went up to her tower to gather her drawing tools. She spent an hour or so sketching out her design in her notebook and then selecting the yard colors that would bring the image to life. It was far easier than she'd thought to visualize the perfect image: the thick pine forests at night with the stars winking and the moon full, wolves running through the trees and howling. She hoped it would comfort them when they could not run outside and remind them of the piece of them that was always strong and free.

She worked carefully as she threaded the loom. Aleeria hadn't worked with it for several months and it wasn't as intuitive a process to set up as it was to actually create with. Generally, she only worked at the loom when it was too cold to sit in the tower all day, away from the fire. Winters were long and bitter in Hungry and it was always difficult being able to see Sabas for only brief snatches of time during those months. She would watch him for minutes only, any longer and she risked illness, which would keep her from seeing him at all and that she could not allow.

Soon, Aleeria told herself, over and over again. Soon, Sabas would be the one to guard her all through the day and then it would not matter if she were sick or the weather cold and miserable. She would see him every day regardless. No longer would she have to be content to see him at a distance, he would be near and vivid, close enough to touch and touch she would. And someday he would be closer still. Her mate.

_Only if he chooses that path_, a sly voice in her head taunted. She ignored it as best she could, but it was insidious, particularly because it spoke truth. Sabas would have to want to be her chosen just as she would have to want to choose him and there were many months between then and now, perhaps more than a year. Aleeria understood well enough how fast things could change between now and then and even more so, she understood how much could go wrong.

She was so lost in these dark musings that she tangled the warp so hopelessly she could not even rethread it as she had after the first two attempts and was forced to cut the threads from the loom entirely. Aleeria shook away her tangled musings as she threw the knotted threads into the fire in her frustration. She was grateful to be a human because if she'd been a Lycan already, she was certain the loom would be splinters by now and then how would she make a blanket for her protectors?

With renewed focus, Aleeria started again, forcing her thoughts to stay only on what she was doing and no farther. At last, the warp was threaded and Aleeria began to wind dyed wool around the shuttle.

* * *

While Aleeria worked, Sabine watched her carefully. She could see Aleeria carefully keeping her thoughts focused on the task at hand, since cutting the warp out and starting for scratch again, that is. It was rather charming, Sabine reflected, how hard Aleeria was working to distract herself from not getting to watch Sabas toil in the yard with the other Lycans. She assumed that was the source of Aleeria's restlessness that she was trying hard to conceal. Certainly, Aleeria's likely concerns over Sabas's welfare while he trained probably added to it as well. Still, Sabine had a heart, even if it rarely beat. When Aleeria paused in her work for some water, Sabine asked her to have one of the guards bring Khan in to see her. Sabine was certain Aleeria would be anxious to hear something of what would occupy Sabas's time. She had no doubt Sabas would be equally curious as to Aleeria's activities and she would allow him to learn of them when it pleased her through Lucian's occasional chaperoning of Aleeria or when she took time to watch the training herself with Aleeria at her side.

When Khan stood before her, Sabine noted the way Aleeria pointedly did not watch the door for Sabas and Lucian to follow even though she plainly wanted to as indicated from the way Aleeria's watchful gaze took in every _other_ part of the room. Sabine acknowledged Khan with a regal nod. "Khan, I trust Vakko and Tristan were disciplined appropriately?" She did so enjoy hearing the details of such punishment and the behavior of two of her guard the night before had certainly merited it.

"Yes, My Lady. They secured the outer gates, in place of the Lycans costing them a full minute of exposure." Khan's voice was neutral, giving no indication of the significance of the statement. For a vampire, when a second of sunlight cost scorched flesh, a minute seemed like an eternity burning flesh down to the bone in places, particularly on less fleshy areas like hands and faces. The price of such lengthy exposure often meant a full day or two of painful recovery if they were not given blood shortly thereafter.

"Excellent," Sabine replied, concealing none of her delight, "And where are they now?"

"Confined, My Lady for the next three days without sustenance," he replied in the same professional tone.

Sabine's eyes glittered in keen pleasure, "They certainly will have time to contemplate their behavior," she approved. "When they are fed, make sure you bring the livestock into their cells. It wouldn't do for them to get into more trouble because of an empty stomach by feeding from the servants."

"Yes, My Lady."

"And Khan," Sabine added, her voice taking on a sharp, frosty edge, "remind them that another offense will cost them more permanently next time. They might, for example, be _castrated_ with sunlight next time."

Khan forced himself not to wince at the thought. "I shall relay the warning in full, My Lady." Khan understood that for Sabine it was as much about demanding total loyalty as it was about her determination to have her gender treated in a more respectful manner, but beyond that, Khan knew it was about Aleeria.

Khan knew Aleeria only selectively. He knew that Sabine had affection for the girl, but he had started to suspect it went beyond the affection of a master for a favorite pet. He knew Aleeria and the other servant girl, the blond one whose name he could never recall, often watched the Death Dealers depart the castle for their patrols, but as many females of the castle did so, it hardly was an informative observation. He could see plainly enough that there was something striking about Aleeria, perhaps it was the sharp contrast of her light eyes framed by her dark hair or perhaps it was the way those large eyes seemed to see right into the soul of a person. Regardless he wasn't fool enough to try and determine what quality Aleeria possessed that was so significant to Sabine. Sabine had made it clear enough that anyone who so much looked at the human in a manner she did not approve of would be punished severely and punishing two of his men that very morning was a forceful reminder. He still had the scent of their burnt flesh in his nose.

"Good," Sabine approved, her voice warmer again. "Now, let's discuss your training of the Lycans. I want you to train them from the ground up like any other member of the Death Dealers. After all, if Lucian is to hunt as a daylight guardian of our borders, he must be trained to have a chance of survival and likewise if Sabas is to be an effective guard against the wild Lycans within the castle he must be similarly trained. I would say to start with hand to hand, they most certainly have a basic grasp of wrestling with another person as that's all they seem to do in their holding cages when they're not eating or sleeping. Therefore more efficient hand to hand combat would be far more useful."

Khan nodded. He'd been thinking along the same lines once Sabine had made him aware of this assignment. "I agree My Lady. That is my plan as well. Shall I collect them as soon as the sun has fully set?"

Sabine considered a moment, glancing out the window. "Make sure they get something into their belly now so it can settle bit before the training begins. Then take them outside to train as soon as the sun goes down and after the Death Dealers ride out."

"As you will, My Lady," Khan replied. He turned to go, but Sabine's voice halted him in his tracks and he turned back to her.

"One more thing Khan, don't damage the Lycans. They are both in my good graces for now and they're no good to me if they can't fight. Be sure anyone else that will have contact with either of them is aware of my edict, particularly Kostas. He needs to know they are no longer under his whip, but mine." Her eyes narrowed at her last word and Khan could feel the sting in her tone. He sincerely hoped he would never have cause to cross her.

Khan gave his assurances and left the room to see to it Sabine's wishes were carried out scrupulously. Though he knew she favored him, he also knew she would not shrink from sending him to seal the gates at dawn if anything were to happen that indicated he had not dispersed her orders thoroughly.

* * *

Aleeria listened to all the exchange with rapt attention, noting once more, her Mistress's strange new protectiveness towards the Lycans. She wanted to believe it was for her sake, but she'd lived in Sabine's house far too long to believe that. The questions about Sabine's attitude towards her and the Lycans rose to the forefront of her thoughts. When Khan left, Aleeria began to gather her courage to speak with Sabine about these matters. She continued to move the shuttle back and forth across the warp of the loom, going over her questions and trying to find the right words to frame them so they would not sound impertinent or disrespectful.

Sabine could almost feel the room vibrating with unspoken words and so she expected Aleeria would soon begin to ask about the things she needed to understand. Sabine moved to her vertical tapestry frame, which sat near the broad loom Aleeria worked at, hoping the gesture would ease Aleeria's obvious nerves.

Sabine was working on a tapestry depicting the history of her family, the line of Markus, before the first of their line was turned. She felt it was important to remember that they had once been part of the human race. She had done a similar one of her own human ancestry long ago and it hung in her quarters as a reminder of what she had gained and lost and how it remained an inescapable foundation for everything she was now. Sabine was so consumed by her train of thought she forgot why she had originally chosen to work on her tapestry again now and so Aleeria's soft voice startled her slightly.

Aleeria's voice was soft and reverent, "Mistress, I have some questions I want to voice and I beg your forgiveness if they are out of line."

Sabine smiled at her, "Fear not, child. I will listen to your questions. I may not answer all of them, but I will listen."

Aleeria nodded, knowing that was far more fair than she should have expected. "I don't understand why you have Lucian watch my tower or accompany me when I travel through the castle, or why you want to have another Lycan trained to guard me by day. I understand that you are fond of me, but really, if I were killed couldn't I be replaced easily enough?"

Sabine paused, she was a little surprised by the question, but she supposed she shouldn't have been. Aleeria was very intelligent and observant. It was quite unusual, even unheard of, for an immortal to care so much for a mortal that they were not planning to turn. Still, it was not the question she had been expecting.

Finally, she turned her eyes to Aleeria's and replied, "For immortals like myself there is so little that is beyond our power to possess. Individuals are unique though and when those of us who will not die have lost others to death, we seek, perhaps unwisely, to replace them, to try and fill that void. When I was alive, I had a daughter. She was killed before I met my second husband, as was her father. She never had a chance to be turned. When you were a little girl, you looked so much like her. Now, as a woman, I imagine you look as she would have. You give me a second chance to have my little girl with me. If I could be certain that you would survive it, I would change you into a vampire and adopt you formally, but because of what happened to your mother, I cannot take that risk. That leaves me only with the option to have you changed into a Lycan."

Aleeria considered all of this. "Is that why you want to elevate the status of Lycans? So my life will be more like it could have been if my blood could handle the change?"

Sabine grinned, my she was bright. "That is one of the reasons, yes. I want to see the Lycans as allies not enemies. If we keep them downtrodden for too long, they might turn on us, but if we give them a chance to prove themselves to not be animals, then they can be better assets to us."

Sabine turned and indicated her loom, "Look at this tapestry I am weaving, Aleeria. It shows the Covinus bloodline from the beginning, before even Alexander Corvinus. It also shows the history of his village from before he was born until their extinction by a plague."

Aleeria stood and walked over to study the images and the lines that ran beneath and around them showing the Corvinus bloodline. "So Markus was the first vampire?"

Sabine hesitated. "Yes, he is. If anything were to happen to him, the rest of our vampire coven would perish. All the rest of us have been turned by him, by others he has turned or born to those who were turned. My husband Arkkon, Markus's son, was born a vampire like Markus and he turned me."

"When were you turned?" Aleeria asked, curious.

Sabine sighed, thinking back. "My first husband was a nobleman and he and I were traveling with our daughter to give Markus our tribute when we were set upon by Lycans. There were not so many then, so there were fewer precautions than there are now. If there had been more Death Dealers, particularly those who could guard in the daylight, we would have been safe. They tore my husband out through the carriage door. My daughter and I tried to cower in the center of the carriage, but the Lycans began to pry open the sides and one of them tore a claw through her. Fortunately, the creature struck her with such force that she died instantly, her body too ruined to turn. I was grateful for that. If she had turned, she would have had to be killed and I couldn't bear that. It was hard enough watching my husband turn and then beheaded and burned, but there was no help for it. He was lost to me the moment the wild Lycan tore into his flesh."

Aleeria's eyes filled with remorse and pity, hearing the story that was not so different from how she lost her own family. She wondered how many more families had been destroyed by the wild Lycans and their unchecked violence and brutality. "How did you survive it?"

"Arkkon rode out with the Death Dealers. They saw our peril from the castle gates, but could not ride out until the sun set. Fortunately, the sun was nearly down when the attack began or there would have been no survivors. He led the other Death Dealers to us and managed to save me and a handful of others. I had nothing to go back to and asked to stay in the castle. He invited me to stay forever and I accepted."

A wistful sigh escaped Aleeria's lips. "Horrible though the rest of that night was, the ending certainly is romantic," she commented.

Sabine smiled a small sad smile. "Yes, that part was very romantic." She paused, her emotions torn between a sense of loss and the powerful memory of Arkkon riding up to her rescue astride a towering black charger. "I hope Arkkon and I have children one day," She continued, her voice more steady. "I would like to have children again, but we're still determining what circumstances allow some turned vampires to conceive and not others."

As Sabine well knew, so far, only born vampires could breed easily and even then there were certain conditions that had to be met. Only a blood-bonded pair could conceive and then only after they had been bonded exclusively for a year. The suspicion was that they each needed a certain amount of each other's blood in their veins to make sure the hereditary material would allow for conception without rejection.

Aleeria stared back at the tapestry. She traced the line from Alexander Corvinus to his wife, Helena and their three sons. She gasped as she read the first two names, twin boys: Markus and William. "William is Markus's brother?" She gaped.

Sabine hesitated again. "Yes. He is. When William was bitten by a wolf as a teenager, his body shapeshifted into the first true werewolf. He could never take human form again. Markus was bitten around the same time by a bat that was trying to drink blood from the animals in his family stables. Markus _could_ take human form again and his offspring did not turn into bats certainly, but he did retain the need for blood and sensitivity to light, though his sensitivity is certainly more extreme than a bat's."

Aleeria rolled this new information around in her mind. "So if William was the first werewolf, then if he was killed, all the wild Lycans would die?"

"Probably, but Markus could never kill his own brother. William cannot return to his body the way Markus can. I'm sure the frustration of it must drive him half mad and his werewolf form does the rest. He is so consumed by overactive instincts to hunt and feed and guard his territory that there is no room for his humanity."

"Poor William. It must be awful for him and poor Markus, unable to help him." Aleeria murmured. "He lost his family to the werewolves too in a way."

"Yes, I suppose he did."

Aleeria shifted wondering if she should ask her next question, but she had to know, for Sabas's sake. "Do you think Lycans should be treated as equals because they are also immortals of the Corvinus bloodline?"

Sabine paused, considering how much to say. "I do not know about treating them as equals. I do know that direct descendants of Williams' line are purely monsters like William, driven mad by their overwhelming animalistic urges. Lucian is the first exception to that and the only child we know of to survive being born from a wild Lycan. All the other Lycans are ones he turned himself or those turned by those he has bitten. I know that many of Lucian's descendants can behave like animals, but we treat them that way and most of them were the dregs of human society before they were turned. Lycans like Lucian and Sabas make me think that they could become something more.

Lycans can take human form again and that makes them different on a basic level. Humans can evolve, change. There is dignity inherent to some of the Lycans and I want to elevate those that possess those qualities and cultivate it. I want to see what their potential is. A warrior with their power _choosing_ to fight for us would be much more valuable if the wild Lycans or werewolves ever mounted a real attack. Their numbers grow faster than we can cope with it and we need more allies. I'm not sure the Lycans are our equals, because I think that those driven by animal instincts cannot reason as well as those of us not burdened by such things. However, I will allow that they might prove to be less driven by such things than their wild cousins. I am willing, because of their lineage to give them that chance."

"Mistress, if we killed William, would all the Lycans die too?"

"It's likely that could happen, yes. That's another reason we don't want to kill William, only his wild pack."

Aleeria sat in silence for a little while then, considering. Finally, she piped up, "How long have you thought the Lycans could be more than our slaves?"

Sabine smiled at Aleeria affectionately. "Since Sabas saved your life. You're quite right. He had no reason to save you, but he showed the instincts of a great man reacting the way he did."

Aleeria flushed thinking of him and those wonderful moments he carried her to safety in his arms. "You know I was thinking today that to convince the others of the coven of the civility in the Lycans, it would help if they were given some basic instruction in etiquette and hygiene and so forth."

"I do believe that is an excellent idea. Once Khan has trained Sabas and Lucian in combat, you can help them learn how to behave as a member of our house. Lucian is taking Sabas to the waterfall in the caves after training each day though. It won't be as thorough as your work, but at least it will wash the worst of the dirt and stench off."

Aleeria hid her face behind the beater on the loom to conceal her expression as she pictured Sabas naked and under the powerful wash of the waterfall. It was such a glorious image and she didn't want Sabine to know she was entertaining it. Sabine's voice interrupted the daydream all too soon.

"You know Aleeria, I think there is a concealed stone ledge in that cavern that you could observe them, just to make sure they are going about cleaning themselves properly. If they're not, then you'll know it's something you'll need to cover in your instruction." Sabine's voice was quite serious, but if Aleeria had been able to look up, she would have seen the conspiratorial gleam of feminine mischief in her eyes.

Aleeria couldn't see that though. Her thoughts were consumed with the opportunity to see Sabas bathing himself while he was unaware of her presence just as she and Sabas had joked about the day before.

"Later this week, if Sabas performs well in his training sessions with Khan, thus proving that he will be continuing with them, you can go and see for yourself," Sabine concluded.

Aleeria grinned broadly, unable to hide it and she and Sabine shared a moment of conspiratorial female laughter. She had no doubt that Sabas would perform well in the training arena, which meant she had some very enjoyable observations to look forward to.

Aleeria continued to weave uninterrupted for the next several hours. Sabine's words gave Aleeria much to consider. While on one hand, Sabine had as good as admitted she wanted to breed a high quality of Lycan servants the way one might breed horses, on the other hand, she seemed to have a certain level of respect for them. And really, when Aleeria considered it, Lycans only existed because Viktor had taken a chance with Lucian to see if anything that stemmed from William's bloodline could be salvaged. Perhaps good could come from this as well.

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A/N: Stay tuned for the next chapter focusing on Sabas and Lucian training. I hope you enjoy this latest installment.


	14. Training Day

**Soaring hawk & ****midnight84118: Thanks for your reviews! I really appreciate them! I hope you like this chapter too. **

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**A/N: Hello all. This chapter is a lot about trying to give you a better feel for the castle. Let me know if makes sense. It also, hopefully, starts to answer questions about Saba's training. Life is still sort of insane for me, but I'm going to keep trying to work on this when I can. I hope to have one more chapter at least up this month.

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**Chapter 14: Training Day**

[Becoming One with the People/Legend of the Seeker Soundtrack/Krull-Love Theme, Last of the Mohicans, Underworld, The Last Samurai, Batman Begins, Dark Knight]

While Sabine filled Aleeria in on some of her thoughts regarding the Lycans in general and the future of an elite class in particular, Sabas and Lucian prepared themselves for their training. After speaking with Khan, Sabas and Lucian were led from their barracks cell to the kitchen where they received a heartier breakfast than either of them could recall ever having consumed before in their lives. Generally, the Vampire's outlook on feeding their slaves seemed to be to feed them enough to enable them to continue toiling for them, but not so much that they could consider rebellion or escape. They applied this rule more strictly to the Lycans than to their human slaves since the humans were sometimes food and the idea of their successful rebellion was laughable at best.

Sabas and Lucian glanced at each other in a shared look of surprise at their full plates before beginning to devour the food set before them. Recalling Aleeria's words about civilizing his personal habits now that he served the House of Markus, Sabas tried as best he could to eat his food in a more dignified manner in spite of not being given utensils. Not that he would have known what to do with utensils if he'd been given them. Fortunately, their breakfast, while hearty, was easy to eat with their hands without making too much of a mess.

All through breakfast, Sabas hoped that Khan would take them up to Sabine for inspection before their training began and by extension, to where Aleeria was, but no such luck. He would have cheerfully sat through another one of Sabine's scathing lectures, dripping with barely disguised threats against his life and more specific parts of his anatomy just to see Aleeria for a few moments. He was comforted by Lucian mentioning that she asked about him. Still, it was not the same as actually communicating with her or sharing the same space. He didn't have time to dwell on it though. All too soon, their plates were taken away and Khan returned to lead them out to the practice arena. Sabas had only seen it before in passing as that space was not used by the Lycans, but could be viewed from some of the wall openings on their way down to their barracks.

* * *

The castle was split into five sections: clear divisions to remind those within where they fit in the scheme of things. The stone fortress was known as Castle Corvinus, guarding over the valley and facing the east. Decades ago, Markus's father had inherited it from his father. In those days, the castle was split into four main sections; the center section was by far the largest and housed the great hall, the council chambers, the vaults, archives and library and deep underneath the rest: dungeons and the torture and interrogation rooms. On three sides of the central section were three smaller castles unto themselves, the two facing each other were for William and Markus respectively, and their eventual families, leaving the third and largest, that faced the main gate, for Alexander. Of course, things had not gone as Alexander Corvinus planned. Markus's house still resided to the southern end of the castle, but it was Amelia's house, not William's that rested to the north. Viktor took over Alexander's house in the western, section of the castle- naturally, the largest and most protected of the three. The Houses of Viktor, Markus, and Amelia were all carved so far into the mountain than very little of them actually received sunlight, which suited their purposes perfectly as Vampires cannot abide the sun. What had once been a defensive design enabling the areas housing the ruling family to remain safer under siege, was now a survival measure of an entirely different sort and perhaps an even more necessary one.

Since the days when the Vampires had taken it over the original castle, the castle had nearly doubled in size. Not only had the original areas been expanded to go deep out and down into the mountain side, but the front of the castle now had two sections, a central yard, walled in and used for training that housed the armory and the stables, and was bordered by the barracks for all three houses. The outer yard was where the Lycans labored, continuing to build and expand along the outer wall. It also was where Lucian's Blacksmith's shop was located along the outer northern corner. Beneath the outer yards, lay the Lycan barracks that were more cells than anything else, used for the slaves that preformed the labor before the time of the Lycans. Since the days when the immortals were first turned, the principle building project was always reinforcing and repairing the outer wall from attack by William's wild Lycans. Even now, decades later, it remained a high priority to as the ranks of werewolves grew faster than the Death Dealers could kill them and the regular skirmishes meant that the walls needed frequent repairs. Vampires and Lycans referred to the wild Lycans as Werewolves to differentiate them from true Lycans who could revert to human form much as Vampires could shift their features when their passions overtook them. It saved confusion, but also made referring to a Lycan as a werewolf a vile insult.

* * *

As they stepped out into the training yard, Lucian observed that if there was to be a privileged class of Lycans they would need improved their living quarters, which likely would be build on the backs of the less privileged Lycans. He shook his head. Things might be getting better for his kind, but they were far from moving fast enough or far enough to his way of thinking. For some of his Lycan brethren, it would never get better enough to keep them from the mire unless they were freed entirely from Vampire rule

The training yard was a broad expanse of dirt and cobblestone enclosed by stone walls with raised seating along one side for nobles to observe safely. Within the yard itself, were various pieces of training equipment and a large stone training ring in close proximity to the raised seating. Khan indicated with his hand for Lucian and Sabas to stand in the center of the training ring: a raised area surrounded by torches suspended in brackets on stone spires that stood four feet high at regular intervals around the circle. Three tiers of stone steps ringed the circle as well and Lucian and Sabas ascended them as indicated. Khan took a torch from the inner wall of the training yard itself and began to light the torches surrounding the circle. Fire was more dangerous to Vampires than Lycans, but both feared it on a primal level, Vampires because it was so lethal to them and Lycans because the wolf that were part of the essence of their blood, feared fire. Fire was also the only way to destroy the body of an immortal so it could not be resurrected by blood.

Lucian and Sabas shied away from the lit torches, instinctively driven by their wolf blood, thus propelling them closer to the center of the stone circle.

Khan noted this and smiled broadly. "Good, that is the point of the torches: To keep you inside the circle while you train. You can, of course easily, exit the circle between the torches without risking being burned, but while you are training, your first rule is to stay within the light."

Both Sabas and Lucian noted that since the platform was raised off the ground, the light did indeed only illuminate the area within the circle.

Sabas imagined that the rule was born initially out of a Vampire's ability to hide unnaturally well within the shadows. Lycans had that skill as well, but due to their more instinctual, animalistic nature, it was rarely honed. Lycans could rely on their speed and strength to overcome their enemies, especially when allowed to take wolf form. Vampires had greater need for stealth, particularly since their hunting times were more limited. However, because vampires were so well-trained to use shadows and stealth to their advantage in hunting or warfare, a combat ring that forced vampires to rely on skills outside of stealth would be most valuable in their training.

"You will start your training by showing me your skills in hand to hand combat," Khan continued. "I am sure, from what I have observed in the Lycan yard and . . . barracks," Khan almost caught himself saying "cages" instead of barracks, which was how most Vampires saw the enclosures the Lycans were kept in. Barracks generally didn't have bars like a prison. The Lycans were fed like dogs, they ate like dogs, and fought like dogs with each other and they had straw to sleep on instead of beds, just like animals in the stables. In short, neither their treatment nor their behavior indicated that their living conditions belonged to anything vaguely resembling soldiers, but barracks is what the Council insisted on calling them when in front of the Lycans. Khan always thought it was just another form of mockery, but Viktor insisted it was to remind the Lycans that their living conditions could be worse. "I am certain," Khan went on, "that you are able to fight on at least a basic level in that way and I want to see what skills if any you have in that area that could be refined. If there are none, it is no matter; we will start at the beginning either way. I merely wish to gauge for myself how rapid your progress might be."

[Mortal Kombat score- Control, Panic Kontrol & Techno Syndrome]

Sabas and Lucian nodded at Khan in acknowledgement and faced each other, spacing themselves out, and squaring off. They made eye contact, silently communicating their mutual assent to the fight to come. It would not be a fight to cause true harm, but they certainly weren't planning to pull punches. That sort of training would not serve their purposes at all. They had to train hard to guard well. They both had too much to lose if werewolves overtook the castle to go easy on each other no matter how long they'd been friends.

Sabas personally thought it would be interesting to see how he did against the oldest and strongest of his kind. He certainly would never have challenged Lucian while they were in the yard or the barracks and not just because they were friends. After all, fighting amongst the Lycans wasn't always about the best sleeping corner or more food or blowing off extra energy. Sometimes, it could be just a friendly tussle between friends to test each other's strength and skill. It was the closet any of them ever got to play. However, it was also a way to establish the pecking order in the pack. Lucian was their alpha, no one questioned that. It was something they all knew and acknowledged as a primal awareness of the first of their kind, the only naturally born of the Lycans. Still, there was much infighting to determine the ranks below alpha.

Sabas himself had taken part in his fair share of fights over the years to earn his rank as a one of Lucian's trusted friends and lieutenants. Raze and he were the pack's betas, Lucian's seconds-in-command. Raze's sheer size made him nearly unstoppable, but he preferred to follow Lucian, than lead. Sabas himself preferred to follow Lucian unless he was in a position to be on his own. He didn't want to lead particularly, but he had no fear of being on his own and he had more sense than Xristo. Sabas was also one of the first turned and that made him stronger than almost all the others. Nearly every other Lycans that had turned when he did had died one way or another in the days since, most while trying to escape. Sabas's age gave him the power he required to become a beta and his long friendship with Lucian had given him wisdom enough of tactics to be an asset to his pack.

Biorg, and Thrasos were the only other Lycans that survived from that first turning. Raze and Xristo had come from the one after. Xristo was the only one of the older Lycans that still chaffed against his position much. Sabas still had to face challenges from him periodically. Lucian was too strong and too established for Xristo to challenge outright and Raze was far too physically dominant for nearly any of them to challenge. Sabas was older than Xristo, but he wasn't significantly larger than Xristo and so he took the brunt of the challenges. He was also a more skilled fighter than Xristo, but that didn't stop the hot-headed Lycan from trying. Sabas chuckled recalling the last time he'd put the Xristo in his place before returning his attention to Khan.

Khan replaced the torch on its bracket along the outer wall and then began to circle around them, keeping out of the torchlight so it would not impede his night vision, which made Sabas and Lucian as easy for him to see at night as it would be for humans to see them by day. Khan's voice was like a bell sounding when he uttered the word, "Begin."

The moment Khan gave them his go-ahead, Lucian and Sabas leapt at each other. They tussled like dogs in a yard at first, rolling, and wrestling in the center of the circle, rolling over and over, each trying to pin the other. Then Lucian kneed Sabas off of him and kicked his leg out to keep Sabas from leaping back on top of him. Lucian kept the fight on their feet from that point on, dodging out of the way any time Sabas tried to drive him to the ground. Sabas in turn was forced to quickly roll back to his feet to keep from rolling right outside the circle, propelled by the momentum he'd intended to use to force Lucian off his feet. After several failed attempts, Sabas became concerned that he might not manage to stop himself from tumbling beyond the boundary of the torches, so he stopped trying.

Sabas understood why Lucian was directing the fight this way as he noticed peripherally that Khan's expression seemed more interesting and approving than disdainful the longer they fought in this way. _More like soldiers and less like dogs,_ Sabas thought bitterly. Sabas was similar in height to Lucian, but Lucian was stronger and thanks to Viktor's interest in him from a young age as an anomaly, Lucian was far better trained. Eventually, Sabas began to slow and when he slowed too much, Lucian pinned him in a choke hold. Sabas was very grateful Aleeria wasn't watching. He would have been quite embarrassed for her to see him defeated so easily, never mind that Aleeria surely knew Lucian was superiorly trained. Sabas didn't want her to think he was weak or unskilled. He didn't want her thoughts traveling down any path that could lead her to select another, stronger mate.

From the outside of the circle of stone and flames came the staccato sound of clapping. At the interruption of the sharp outside noise, Lucian released his hold on Sabas immediately. Sabas and Lucian crouched near the center of the ring, positioned defensively back to back, panting lightly for breath.

"Well done, both of you." Khan praised. "You both did far better than I anticipated. There is no point teaching either of you how to grapple. You both can do so well enough and in any case it will be far different doing so with a werewolf and that's certainly something that no amount of training in you human forms will be able to prepare you for, so again, no point continuing that line of training. You will start with hand to hand, which you will be able to use with mortals or werewolves, and then progress to blunt weapons eventually leading to sword play. Ideally, you will take down any werewolves with ranged weapons like the crossbow, but if they do come within range, beheading is the next best option and for that, you will need to be able to wield a blade skillfully. The blunt weapon instruction will help you develop the dexterity and muscles necessary for that."

Lucian and Sabas nodded their understanding, rising slowly to a standing position. Khan beckoned them to come out of the circle and they did so. Then he spent hours teaching them hand to hand combat. They started with form, which required a great deal of holding a single position as it's many applications and the finer points of its proper technique were elaborated upon by Khan. Khan circled them both, adjusting their form and stance, pointing out to both of them what they did well, and what they did poorly. Khan had them moving into combat maneuvers and then holding them to be evaluated, corrected, focusing on perfecting their form. At the end of their lessons, as their muscles were more exhausted than either of them could have imagined after hours of mainly remaining motionless, Khan sent them back into the ring to fight again. They were far too exhausted to make a best showing of their newly learned techniques, but Khan was satisfied that they were utilizing the basic moves well enough and had come far in a single evening.

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Sabas concluded after spending the final hour sparring with Lucian that it was far less tiring to fight than to train and he told Lucian so on the way to the underground bathing area Sabine had mentioned to Aleeria that Lucian generally used when the Death Dealers slept. It was nearly dawn now and the Death Dealers had returned hours before.

"It will all gradually become easier my friend," Lucian assured him. "I remember that being the case anyway when I was younger and Viktor delighted in seeing how many of his guards I could defeat in combat before exhausting myself." Lucian stretched out his arms, rubbing the sore muscles as he began peeling off his leathers. "That said, I am still feeling rather sore. I suppose it's been longer than I realized since I trained formally."

Sabas nodded, unbuckling his leather tunic and frogging, trying not to let his thoughts wander too far to memories of when Aleeria had put his clothes back onto him the day before. As he was about to bathe, Sabas didn't want Lucian to get the wrong impression while he was thinking about the touch of Aleeria's skillful hands, even if Lucian had no interest in males. Sabas could hear the rush of water ahead of them and feel its soft spray on his face as they began to move out of the tunnels. It felt relaxing after a long night of training. Then he saw a shadow move outside the entrance to the tunnel and stiffened.

Lucian slowed as well until a familiar scent filled his nose, causing him to rush forward. He glanced around the grotto swiftly and upon seeing no other, rushed into the arms of the shadow, who Sabas could now see was Sonja, Viktor's only daughter. He relaxed immediately. Sonja was no enemy to the Lycans and Sabas knew of the relationship that had developed between Sonja and Lucian. They hid their feelings well from others, but Sabas and a few other Lycans knew their secret and helped to guard it. Sabas privately relished the thought of the sheer irony of Viktor, the greatest danger to Lycans, not knowing that his daughter was involved with one.

Sabas walked up to Lucian and took his friend's leather tunic from his hand as he walked past. Lucian was entirely engaged in his woman and barely noticed. Sabas walked the perimeter of the cave, assessing that they were truly alone and then he went to the waterfall. The sound of its pounding waters vibrated through the cave. Sabas put his tunic and Lucian's on a flat rock out of reach of the worst of the spray. He didn't want all Aleeria's efforts on behalf of his clothes to be erased too quickly.

Sabas took a final visual sweep of the cavern and then finished stripping off his pants and boots before putting them with the rest of his clothes. He turned his back to Lucian and Sonja, letting them have some privacy while they embraced. Sabas stood under the water, letting the pounding water wash away the dirt and grime while massaging his much-abused muscles. The rushing of the water over his skin was soothing, drowning out his awareness of everything else. He stole glances around the cave every so often to make sure no one snuck up on the lovers, but otherwise he let his attention drift as much to give Sonja and Lucian more privacy as to soothe his spirit after a long day.

Sabas thought of Aleeria, the only thing he seemed to think about much anymore. While the waterfall felt wonderful, he would have much preferred to have her bathe him instead, even if it meant being chained up again. _Those damn chains_. He'd been so busy thinking about her since the night before that he'd forgotten the chains and the wear and tear that over a day of being imprisoned in them would do to him. No wonder he was so sore and so easily defeated. His body was still recovering from being bound and half stretched for a full day. Sabas chuckled under the rough flow of the waterfall. Aleeria was really something to manage to make him nearly forget all that physical strain entirely. Gods, he wished she were with him now; that awed, hungry look in her eyes. He would much prefer to have _her_ massaging away his aches and pains to the pounding water.

Sabas took another glance around the cave, seeing the Lucian and Sonja were talking softly, their heads pressed close their bodies touching at as many points as possible. As he observed, Sonja began to rub Lucian's shoulders while she whispered into his ear. How nice it would be to come home after a long day of toil to a woman who would take care of you, see to your pains and aches, to listen to your tales of the day's adventures and bear witness to the whole of your life? He thought about Aleeria filling that void in his life and it sent deep waves of warmth through him.

He wasn't fool enough to think it would be easy, but he did hope that it would be easier for him and Aleeria than it had been for Lucian and Sonja so far. They'd been involved for many years now, but it was never safe for them. Sabas recalled the long, secret looks they'd shared in the years before they finally admitted the feelings that had grown between them.

Sonja was still a young woman when she and Lucian had first spoken of their feelings. She was training to be a Death Dealer, but her father was overcautious with his only daughter and he sent Lucian to run alongside her and act as an additional protection for her. They hunted werewolves together many times without mishap. Then one night the patrol Sonja and Lucian rode with was ambushed by a great number of werewolves. Only the two of them survived. To evade the werewolves, they were forced to backtrack to a cave to wait out the day, so Sonja could travel again. There in the cave, while they waited for the day to pass so they could try to slip past the werewolves, they admitted their feelings and let their lives be forever changed by them.

Sabas wanted that for himself and Aleeria. He wanted the sort of love that made every obstacle seem insignificant and made dreams seem tangible. It was dangerous, because you could forget the very real dangers, but it could burn away everything dark in your life like a forest fire and allow for new life and new growth. If nothing else, Aleeria made him burn; with longing, with hunger, with acute awareness even as it distracted him as nothing else could.

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While Sabas alternated between keeping watch and ruminating about Aleeria, Sonja and Lucian spoke in swift whispers. It was always this way when they were alone. The pressure would build between them in the absence of privacy, fueled by memory, stolen glances, the scent and sense of each other in the castle in the passages they both travelled though not together, never together, until they could be truly alone. Then when they could barely stand the weight and pressure of their secret, they would find a time and place hidden away and then pressure would begin to release, first in the hiss of words and reassurances, then progressing to a release of a more satisfying sort.

Their time was always limited, so they had to balance between swiftness and savoring. Lucian told Sonja what events of importance had passed since their last meeting and she told him of her world beyond what he was privy to. As each spoke, the other listened and pressed closer, absorbing the words and the feel of the other. Eventually, the words became less important and lips and tongue were used to communicate needs instead of events. When they could not be alone, Lucian preferred them to be together face to face so Sabas, or whichever Lycan was keeping watch, would be less likely to see any of his beloved when he scanned the room to keep them safe. Sabas might not see anything intentionally, but Lucian was protective nevertheless. While many Lycans helped to keep their secret, only Sabas and Raze were permitted to keep watch for them. Lucian trusted their discretion and honor above all others. Sabas even more so now, since his eyes were for Aleeria alone.

Lucian let himself drown in the scent of Sonja's hair as he kissed his was from her lips to her ears and then back. Sonja felt her incisors lengthen and the desire to sink them into her lover's shoulder begin to grow more insistent. Lucian felt a similar urge, to mark her as his with teeth and claw, but they had to resist as their blood was poison to the each other. So instead, they focused on other delicious ways to claim each other while the waterfall surrounded them with mist.

Lucian kissed his way down her neck, nipping at the cool flesh, but not enough to break the skin. While his mouth was busy with her neck, he unlaced her bodice along her back until he could pull it free, then he pulled her long-sleeved tunic over her head revealing her to him from the waist up. Sonja tangled her fingers in his long hair as Lucian continued to trail open-mouthed kisses down her chest, now unencumbered by her clothes. Her legs wrapped more tightly around his waist as he captured one dark, tight nipple in his mouth, rolling it around with his tongue. Then he released it, to her groan of protest, before kissing around the edge of her breast, then the top, slowly circling his way back until he recaptured her nipple and suckled it back into his mouth to Sonja's delight.

After he'd administered to the other breast in a similar fashion, Sonja pushed him back to lie on the broad, flat rock they'd been perched on. She nipped along the column of his throat and then lower, over his chest, pausing to lick and nip at his nipples while he groaned, arching into her touch. She slid down further, continuing to lick and nip at the waistline of his pants while she worked the laces impatiently with her hands. When they released, his hardened length sprang free and she caught it between her lips, wresting another strangled moan from Lucian.

She swirled her tongue around the tip then nibbled down his length before drawing in all of him. She repeated until his fingers dug into her shoulders and his stomach went tight. "Sonja," he rasped. It was only a single word, but she understood that he was close and so she stopped, releasing him and then sliding off entirely long enough to lift her long woolen skirts. She moved back over him, kissing him deeply as she slid him inside. They moaned as the visceral connection was made once more. It always felt so right when they were connected physically and emotionally in this way. She began to move over him, slow and savoring at first and then faster until they both cried out.

They lay together murmuring sweet words only they could hear for awhile shrouded in mist from the waterfall before Lucian grabbed her waist, lifted them up and rolled her under him, never separating himself from within her. Then the dance began again.

* * *

All the while Lucian and Sonja enjoyed each other's company, Sabas intermittently kept watch, carefully averting his eyes from Lucian and Sonja just as he would wish Lucian to do should he every need such a thing to be with Aleeria. No one approached the caves, which was no surprise and this was why the pair often met here. Sabas didn't mind keeping watch anyway, but he was happy when he could return his thoughts to Aleeria and dream of a future with her where they didn't have to hide anything.

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A/N: Sorry there's not more heat between Sabas and Aleeria in this chapter, but I need some story for a little while. I'll get back there. I'm still licking my wounds so please be as patient as you can with the updates. Your reviews really help cheer me up and wanting to write in spite of everything.


	15. The Space Between

**Taylorxtorniquet:** Thank you as always for the feedback and encouragement. I'm hoping to do spotlights on other sets of characters as the series progresses.

**Maggie 56: **Thanks for the warm wishes Maggie. I'm doing a lot better these days.

**Soaring hawk:** Thanks for the shout out. I hope you had a good holiday too. Here are two more chapters to enjoy.

A/N: Sorry this took so long, but I felt very strongly about posting chapters 15 & 16 together and it took longer to edit both. One of these days, I'll edit the whole mess thus far (for technical stuff, not content), but for now I apologize for the stuff I've missed. If you see something and tell me (in a private message, not a review please) I will fix it and sing your praises.

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Chapter 15: The Space Between**

[Becoming One with the People/Legend of the Seeker Soundtrack/Krull-Love Theme/Cut-Plumb]

After what seemed like both days and mere seconds, Lucian and Sonja surfaced from their love-making and began to re-dress.

"How has your training been going?" Sonja asked while she pulled her tunic back on.

Lucian smiled. "It's going about as well as I expected. We have a long way to go though before I am a Death Dealer."

"Nonsense; you've run with us before."

"That was a long time ago," Lucian grinned. "And I was little more than a guard dog for you back then, not a hunter and warrior in my own right. I need to be more skilled than that if I am to lead a daylight team." He argued.

Sonja suddenly yanked him against her, kissing him fiercely. "I don't like the idea of you out there without me," she confessed breathlessly when she finally pulled away.

Lucian ran his fingers tenderly along the side of her face. "I will be careful, my love. I swear it by the Moon: I will come home to you just as you come home to me. Someday, when there are enough Lycans allowed to go on these patrols, perhaps I'll be permitted to hunt with you again."

Sonja laughed weakly. "That day is much too far away for my liking."

"And mine," Lucian agreed, "But that day is still more than we've had to hope for in a long time."

She nodded, beginning to re-lace her corset. "I best get back to my rooms. I do actually need some sleep before my patrol after nightfall." Sonja smiled teasingly, but it didn't reach her eyes. It was like having an organ slowly torn from her chest every time they had to part and go back to pretending they were nothing to each other. Sonjas would much rather get her much-needed sleep while curled against Lucian's warmth, even if she didn't need to be warm, she enjoyed it thoroughly when he was the cause.

When she was ready to head back off down one of the tunnels, Lucian took hold of her hand and pulled her back to him, kissing her possessively. "I will think of you all the time in between."

Sonja smiled and kissed Lucian back just as thoroughly. "And I you. Just remember every time I treat you like an unworthy dog, I would rather be here with you, in your arms."

He let her up and drew her hand to his lips. "I will. Come again, _soon_. We'll be here after each training session until Kahn thinks we're ready to graduate to active duty."

Sonja smiled warmly just before she disappeared back into the shadowy tunnel. "I will," she promised.

Lucian felt the raw pain echo hollowly inside him as soon as she was gone from sight and closed his eyes, leaning back until he lay down on the rock where he and Sonja had enjoyed the last few hours and closed his eyes, letting his senses focus on her lingering scent, letting it ease the ache as much as it could.

Sabas had long since dried off and strapped himself back into his leathers, keeping watch from a ledge along the wall that let him see the whole of the cave, but easily divert his eyes from the rock Lucian was sprawled upon. Once they were once more alone, Sabas took another visual sweep of the room and a deep sniff of the air. Scenting only Lucian and himself as fresh scents in the cave, he tossed Lucian's tunic down to him. Lucian's arm shot up and caught it without actually opening his eyes.

"Gods, it never gets any easier. I'm not sure I want it to, but I wish things we didn't have to spend so much time pretending to feel only distain for each other." Lucian groaned.

Sabas nodded sympathetically. "I can't imagine that would ever get easy. I'm not looking forward to being around Aleeria when she has to treat me as Sabine expects her to- like a favored pet. But I can't imagine being in your position. At least if I play my cards right, I could be with Aleeria, openly."

"A great deal would have to change before that was an option for me," Lucian sighed heavily. "Still, at least I have her heart."

Sabas didn't reply. That was something he did not have from Aleeria. Not yet, anyway, but he had every intention of changing that, any way he could.

* * *

The next two months passed slowly for both Aleeria and Sabas. Their only contact lay in both of them questioning Lucian separately on the well-being of the other. On the second day following their separation, Aleeria had related to Lucian the punishment that had befallen the Vampire guards who had disrespected her in front of Sabine. Both Lucian and Sabas had shared many a vengeful laugh over the mental image of the two guards blistered and imprisoned. Nevertheless, now that Aleeria and Sabas had at last been able to speak and touch, the days and nights apart seemed an eternity.

Lucian took breaks from training during the Dark Moon phases to protect Aleeria in her tower while she had her monthly cycle, a task Sabas deeply envied. Aleeria also continued to wish it was Sabas and not Lucian guarding her, but she did enjoy hearing about their training regardless. It made Sabas feel closer to hear how he'd spent his days beyond the glimpses she could see from the windows before the cold became too much. In turn, she told Lucian about her days and conversations with Sabine in hopes that he would share them with Sabas during the following weeks until her cycles came again.

Aleeria continued to work diligently on the woolen blankets while Sabas and Lucian trained. She was half-way done weaving the first blanket the evening Khan came up early in the evening to inform Sabine that Lucian and Sabas had progressed from hand-to-hand to the quarter staff.

Saba's sole comfort during those long months lay with the knowledge of what lay ahead, the memory of what lay behind, and at night he fell asleep to the sound of the Angel of the Night singing him into peaceful dreams. With the rag full of Aleeria's scent by his head, Sabas dreamed that it was she who sang him to sleep. Little did he know he was right. Aleeria's comfort was found in much the same places: her memories, her hopes, and her gift of song. She wished she had something that smelled like Sabas to console herself with when she was alone and could dream of him freely. Instead, she slept near the bar of lavender soap she had used to clean him, its scent was masculine, feminine, and soothing all at once, and it kept her unconscious mind filled with good dreams. So when Khan came to report on Sabas and Lucian's progress, he had Aleeria's complete and undivided attention.

"Marvelous Khan," Sabine purred. "Your students are coming along well then?"

"Yes my Lady." Khan replied bowing slightly.

"Any problems with either of them? Any reasons they should not continue?" Sabine asked with feigned lightness of tone.

Khan shook his head emphatically. "No, My Lady. To the contrary, both are hard-working and will serve you well. I merely wanted to report to you on their swift progress and see if you would like to observe their newly acquired skill yourself."

Aleeria, still in the room, barely kept her excitement leashed.

Sabine noted how well Aleeria kept her features schooled in polite, interest hiding her excitement in all features, save her eyes, which danced with anticipation. Sabine pretended to consider Khan's suggestion carefully for several minutes. "Yes, I think it would be an excellent idea to observe our future guards in action. Tomorrow night then, I will go to see how far your training has progressed." When Khan left, Sabine shared a smile with Aleeria. "Well, tomorrow sounds like it should be an entertaining evening. You'll have a chance to see how Sabas is progressing."

Aleeria's expression brightened, all pretense gone. "I will? Truly Mistress, I may accompany you?"

Sabine laughed warmly. "Of course. You have a far greater stake in his progress in many respects. You can see how he's progressed and if he's shaping up to be the sort of man you could trust to protect you and our House."

Aleeria nodded mutely. After months that had seemed unending, finally, she would see _her_ Lycan from closer proximity than a distant tower window. The day passed slowly, every hour stretching into three.

Meanwhile, although Sabas and Lucian noticed that Khan seemed to be training them harder than ever, Khan gave no indication to either of them that they would be observed the following evening. To Khan's way of thinking, it wasn't relevant, they needed to perform well regardless of who was or wasn't watching. He didn't want to get them so nervous that they couldn't demonstrate their new skills.

Therefore, when Aleeria and Sabine came to watch Sabas and Lucian practice the next night, it came as quite a shock. Particularly, since Aleeria had gone down to eat with Erika instead of being accompanied by Lucian, thus providing no opportunity to warn them.

The night was bitterly cold. Even in her rooms, Aleeria could see her breath curl around her. Between the heady combination of cold, her own excitement, and nerves, Aleeria could hardly do her fastenings. She bundled herself up as best she could, without making herself look like she was disfigured. She wanted to stay warm, not look like an animate figure made of lumpy oatmeal, especially since Sabas hadn't seen her in weeks. Aleeria didn't want his only memory of her for the next two months or more to be of someone so decidedly unappealing. On the other hand, she didn't want to die of pneumonia before she ever had a chance to be turned. So, Aleeria chose a dress of thick, deep blue wool with sleeves long enough to cover her hands entirely and wore two woolen cloaks. Still, there was a gap between the top closure of her cloak and the top of her dress, sufficient to display a respectable amount of cleavage.

Once outside, Aleeria followed closely at Sabine's heels to the training area. Aleeria had been there before, but only to observe the Death Dealers and generally, only in the company of Erika. This would be an entirely different matter of actually being emotionally invested in the outcome, instead of merely pretending to be.

Sabas scented Aleeria the moment she stepped out of the stone corridors and followed her Mistress to the sheltered stands where the Vampire nobility sometimes watched competitions between the Death Dealers. He was so startled when he actually saw her that he lost the flow of the fight and Lucian swept his legs out from under him with the quarter staff.

While Sabas was picking himself up, Lucian saw what had distracted his friend and grinned down at him, "Sorry, brother. I did not realize your attention was so completely diverted."

Sabas shook his head. "No, I should have been paying closer attention. I just wish she hadn't seen that; not a very respectable display."

Lucian grunted and gave Sabas a hand up. "Come on, they're just getting settled. She may not have even seen it. Based on the way they're settling in, I'd say that you'll have plenty of time to fill her head with much more impressive visuals."

Sabas nodded and got his guard back up just in time for Khan to call for a halt Sabas felt was several minutes too late. Khan indicated that Lucian and Sabas should stand and face Sabine with him and then they would bow. The three of them did so as Khan presented them to Sabine. While Khan said all the proper words of introduction and spoke about their training regime, Sabas allowed himself a slow, lingering look at Aleeria. Torchlight flickered around her features, caressing them with golden light even as the misting rain obscured other parts of her figure in shadow and fog. The combination resulted in enhancing the contrasts of her form, giving her a regal, otherworldly appearance. Her deep blue dress made her eyes look an unearthly blue, like she was a creature of fae, bound in human form and recognizable as such only through her eyes. Sabas hoped Aleeria could see his regard for her reflected in his eyes. He was afraid that showing her more direct attention, for fear that it would be seen by Sabine as disrespectful and thus earn her displeasure. Sabas recalled all too well from Aleeria's story how Sabine had show her displeasure to her own Vampire guards when she viewed their behavior as disrespectful. He had no desire to see how she would communicate similar sentiments to him.

Aleeria couldn't take her eyes off of Sabas. She did see him fall, the impact nearly stealing her breath away. Then he stood up and she got a good look at him, and he stole her breath away for an entirely different reason. He looked so powerful, so in his element, standing at the ready, weapon in hand and body encased in leather, the firelight making his sweat and moisture-slick muscles gleam. Sabas looked like a creature of magic and myth, which she supposed was true. Aleeria shivered pleasantly, recalling how that body had felt under her hands when she'd bathed him and appreciating the new layers of muscle and sinew she could see. Sabas stared at her with such intensity; she wondered that she didn't melt on the spot. Aleeria suddenly found her thoughts torn from a very pleasant daydream about bathing him again in the future when Lucian and Sabas squared off for another fight.

"Sabas," Lucian hissed as they readied themselves for the next round, "Do you want me to go easier on you, so your lady might see your skill?"

Sabas shook his head fiercely. He appreciated the offer, as there was little chance he'd beat Lucian anytime soon. However, he knew Sabine and Aleeria were unlikely to be fooled, and he was sure that sort of deception would not be a point in his favor. If he managed to beat Lucian one day, he wanted it to be real and he hoped Aleeria was there to see it.

Lucian nodded once, signaling that he understood Sabas's reasons and then Khan called the start of the fight.

Their quarterstaffs clashed together, the hard clatter sounded like thunder to Aleeria. She watched Lucian swing at Sabas's head and then saw Sabas duck and swing his staff out, forcing Lucian back. Then Lucian jabbed at Sabas's middle, making contact. Sabas grunted, but swept his staff in front of him and deflected the staff away before it could make a second contact. Lucian began skillfully herding Sabas where he wanted, changing his tactic in an instant to strike out before retreating and herding Sabas away to prevent him from landing a return blow. Around and around the training circle they went until finally Sabas, who had started watching Lucian's pattern, waited until he was sure Lucian was going to shift and attack, turned the tables. As Lucian shifted position, Sabas moved in and landed several well-aimed blows to Lucian's torso and then a sharp upward blow to Lucian's chin. Lucian went down, but quickly recovered, sweeping out with both staff and leg to knock Sabas off his feet, who was too amazed that his gambit had worked to get clear in time. Sabas hit the ground hard, but got up fast getting clear of a second attack and returned to circling the ring.

Aleeria knew Sabas would heal easily enough from any injury he received, but it was still painful to watch. Each blow seemed to reverberate through her own body as she watched him hold his own against Lucian. Eventually, Lucian swept Sabas's legs out from under him a second time and he planted his foot on Sabas's arm, keeping his staff immobilized. Sabas rolled, kicked Lucian off of him, and then leapt up ready to fight again. As they were about to re-engage, Sabine stood up clapping and the sound froze them in place.

"Well done." Her voice was not loud, but it carried well in the darkness nevertheless. Sabas, Lucian, and Khan all turned in the direction of Sabine's voice and bowed.

"Khan, your students have learned much. I think I may need to come and observe their practice more regularly. This is highly entertaining."

Aleeria and Saba's eyes drew together as if magnetized, the hope Sabine's words held for them was like a rope between them drawing taught. They both knew it would mean they would have at least be able to see each other in closer proximity and more often than they would have otherwise, at least until training ended. Once again, it was just another step closer to being in each other's worlds.

Khan nodded, pleased that his students' progress met with Sabine's obvious approval, "As you wish my Lady."

Sabine rose and began to move towards the tunnels leading back into the castle. She saw Aleeria's reluctance, but Sabine could also see how cold she was. "Come Aleeria, let's leave them to continue practicing."

Aleeria nodded, dutifully dragging her eyes away from Sabas. She gave him a final glance over her shoulder that she tried to pour all her longing into, hoping he would hear in her gaze what she could not say aloud. Sabas hoped she could read the mirrored longing in his eyes as well, though as she was so far away and merely human, he was not sure how well she could see him.

* * *

A/N: Please Read & Review.


	16. Trial by Firelight and Fever

**Chapter 16: Trial by Firelight and Fever**

[Becoming One with the People/Legend of the Seeker Soundtrack/Krull-Love Theme/Cut-Plumb]

At least once a week for the next three months, Sabine brought Aleeria with her to observe Sabas and Lucian continue their training. I helped the time apart to pass more quickly for both Sabas and Aleeria. Aleeria watched Sabas progress from the quarterstaff to axes and daggers, then crossbows, spears, and finally swords. Aleeria found flail practice to be the worst to watch. She was certain either of them would bash the other's head in at any moment, but it mainly became a show of evasion and skill, as well as keeping from inflicting damage on themselves, especially when they missed.

While the next three months of training were eased by getting to see each other far more than they had during the first two months, Aleeria and Sabas had not been able to actually speak except in brief sentences delivered through Lucian. While they both appreciated Lucian's willingness to help, they could say very little to each other. Any message they communicated had to be short enough that Lucian could remember it to repeat it as neither Lycan knew how to read or write. Sabine had taught both to Aleeria, but although Aleeria vowed to make sure she taught Lucian and Sabas when she had the chance, those plans didn't help them now, when it would have been particularly useful. Furthermore, Sabas and Aleeria couldn't really say anything too personal to each other through Lucian as neither wished to share such things with Lucian or anyone else even for the purposes of sharing such thoughts with each other.

Lucian and Sonja continued to meet regularly in the cave during the early daylight hours while the rest of the Vampires slept. Sabas continued to keep watch for them, even though their closeness continued to be a reminder of everything he feared and everything he longed for. Each time Sonja left the cave and Lucian's eye took on that look of a deeply wounded animal, Sabas feared the possibility not only that Aleeria might choose another, but the possibility that the Vampires would change their minds and risk turning her into one of them after all. If that happened and she survived the transformation, he and Aleeria would end up a lower profile version of Sonja and Lucian.

When Kahn felt Sabas and Lucian had reached a level of proficiency, he invited Aleeria and Sabine to watch them fight two Death Dealers to prove their skills. If they could hold their own or win against two of the younger Death Dealers, they were ready. Eventually, they would also be tested in the field in a hunt for Werewolves. Aleeria for one wasn't looking forward to it. As each Full Moon for the last five months passed, Aleeria listened keenly to the howls of the Lycans imagining she could hear Sabas howling for her. Aleeria's human hearing couldn't of course pick out the distinct pitch of Saba's howling from among the thousands of howls reverberating throughout the castle and from the hills all around. Werewolf and Lycan alike reveled in their wild form on the night of and those just before and after the Full Moon, when the rise of the glowing orb called most deeply to their wolf nature, forcing the change on the Lycans and making the Werewolves wilder. It was as elemental as the sun calling to the rooster and shunning the Vampire. However, though Aleeria might not be able to _know_ Sabas howled at the Moon for her, he did howl for her and to her, telling all who could hear him how his wolf soul craved her already, perhaps always had.

* * *

The night Aleeria and Sabine went to observe Sabas and Lucian in their final test before going out into the field, a thick, wet mist blanketed everything, infusing all it touched with cold and damp. If it had been any colder, ice would have slicked the wet stones of the castle. Aleeria wore her blue woolen dress again and bundled herself up again. Her limbs felt wooden and her skin hummed with a sick sort of anxiety. She was filled not just with the anticipation of Sabas's first leg of training being at an end and seeing him again, but she was sick at the thought of him fighting Death Dealers. Aleeria had been accompanying Erika to watch the Death Dealers spar since she learned that Sabas would fight one of them. She flicked through their faces in her mind trying to guess who he would have to fight. Even the newer ones were lethal in their proficiency with weapons and this would be a fight with swords of all things. Deep down, Aleeria knew it had to be this way, as a hand-to-hand fight would not prove much regarding their progress. On the other hand, she knew all too well how easily and accident could happen and no immortal could survive beheading.

When Aleeria stepped outside the castle passageways, the icy cold struck her as soundly as a slap to the face. The chilling wetness slid under her clothes as efficiently as if she had walked into water. The shock of it robbed her of breath and thought so completely that she didn't even notice Sabas until she was seated. He stood with Lucian on one side of the training ground, sparring. The moment Aleeria sat down though her eyes gravitated towards him.

What she had missed as the cold stole her attention, was the way Sabas had scented her as soon as she stepped outside and immediately blocked Lucian's sword swipe before holding up his hand to signal a break. Once Lucian withdrew himself back into his own space, Sabas focused his attention fully on Aleeria. He noted her attention was not on him as he'd expected. Instead, Sabas could see the way her brow furrowed and her features shrank back in a look that almost spoke of pain. Protective fury rose in him until he noticed the way she rubbed her arms once she was seated and the way her entire expression relaxed and glowed when she saw him watching her. She was cold, not in pain, he realized, relieved. More than that, she was clearly happy to see him though he also noticed the lines of worry and strain around her eyes. He flashed her a small, confident smile that she returned and he noted seemed to relax her a little more. Sabas wished he could tell Aleeria not to worry, that he'd learned enough to handle this test of skill, but he couldn't. So he gave her a final nod and returned his attention to warming up with Lucian.

While the sight of Sabas's smile had warmed her up considerably, Aleeria still found her skin was shivering even if it no longer felt cold to her. So, she shifted her seat closer to the nearest torch. Unfortunately, as soon as she sat down, she noticed that while she felt warmer in closer proximity into the open flame, the fire also interfered with her ability to adjust her vision to watch Sabas in the darkened training yard. So, torn between reluctance at leaving the warmth and frustration at not being able to watch _her_ Lycan, Aleeria moved her seat back to its original location. She kept her eyes on Sabas and the accompanying warmth of the action helped her forget the returning chill.

Sabine watched Aleeria's deliberation and without saying anything, took the fur draped across her lap, which was for the luxury, not because she needed protection from the cold, and draped it over Aleeria's shoulders. Aleeria smiled at her and whispered thanks to which Sabine merely nodded. She considered mildly that it might be too cold outside for Aleeria, but she hadn't the heart to send her back inside the castle. Sabine knew how much Aleeria had invested in this fight, and how torturous it would be for her to have to wait out the result of the fight elsewhere, unable to see how Sabas fared. Sabine was unwilling to do that unless it was absolutely necessary. So she would just keep an eye on her young handmaiden and hope Aleeria could hold out in the chill and damp until the end of the fight. Sabine noted with some relief that the Death Dealers had arrived to the yard as well, so the fight could begin shortly. After all, the sooner the match began, the sooner Aleeria could return to the warmth of the castle proper.

Aleeria stiffened as she saw the Death Dealers who entered the field: Soren and Kraven. She would not have termed them as young, but then again, perhaps compared to the other Death Dealers they were newer recruits. They were also among the most cruel and sadistic of the lot and she instinctively trusted neither of them. Aleeria also knew they were friends with each other. She'd seen them spar, and they fought well together as a unit. Her eyes flew to Sabas, her heart rising in her throat to choke her with helpless fear. Aleeria was grateful, though, that while Kraven and Soren were a vile lot, they didn't hate Lycans as much as a lot of the other Vampires, which upon reflection, was probably why they were selected to test Lucian and Sabas. Kraven and Soren generally had no feelings whatsoever regarding Lycans. They simply saw them as a means to an end, as they were far more concerned with power than racial hatred.

Khan let the Death Dealers warm up a little before he called for their attention from the center of the ring. "Tonight is a final training exercise. Kraven and Soren, you will spar with Sabas and Lucian in the fighting ring. There is to be no serious damage done on either side. Pinning your opponent is the key to a win. You will fight all together as a group allowing you to work as teams if you choose to. Sabas and Lucian, if you succeed in passing this test, you will be asked to face a Death Dealer in single combat in the future as part of your training. In short, you will selectively be training just like one of them if you pass tonight. Good Luck."

Khan bowed to the warriors and left the ring. Sabas took a last long look at Aleeria, noticing the confident smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. He knew other men might have been upset by the apparent lack of confidence, but Sabas told himself that it wasn't Aleeria's lack of faith in him; her fear for him was simply too overwhelming to be so easily assuaged. He sent her another small smile that she returned and then turned his full attention to the ring. Sabas and Lucian entered the circle from one side and Kraven and Soren from the other side.

"You will not begin until I give the word," Khan ordered. "You will first bow to the Lady Sabine and then to each other." All four to the males did as Khan asked and then took their stances. "Begin." Khan's voice was soft, but it acted on the four of them like a whip crack.

Swords flashed so fast, Aleeria had difficulty tracking the fight. At first it was only the clash of steel against steel, but then Soren drew blood from Lucian's arm in a sweeping blow that Lucian managed to block mainly with his blade, but the tip of Soren's sword slit a gash along his bicep. As the scent of blood filled the air, the fight took on a deadlier feel. All four of them, spurred on by bloodlust, began to attack more fiercely. Kraven and Sabas struck out at each other. Sabas succeeded in slicing open Kraven's sleeve and Kraven returned the favor to Sabas's bare arm and his thigh.

Aleeria gasped and gripped the edge of the stone balcony where they observed. _Her _Lycan was bleeding. She had a sudden and irrational desire to sever Kraven's head from his body. Never before had she so thoroughly condemned Erika's taste in males. Aleeria was relieved to see that Kraven was bleeding too, but the slash along Sabas's leg, slit his leather pants open and exposed a long line of thigh, slick with _his_ blood. Her fingers curled into claws that would have been useless against any of the immortals, but still the fierce desire to attack raged through her, warring with the sick swirl of fear. Aleeria was so consumed with the fight that she scarcely noticed that she was shivering from the chill and damp.

Aleeria was, in fact, shaking so hard with a potent cocktail of fear, rage, and cold that Sabine was planning to send her inside if the fight didn't end soon. For better or worse, it did end soon. In a blur of motion, two figures stood with their opponents pinned to the ground: Lucian, with a blade to Soren's throat and Kraven, disarmed, with a boot over Sabas's throat. Anger sparked in all four sets of eyes. Khan called a halt as soon as the two bodies were pinned to the floor of the stone circle.

Sabine stood up, clapping. Her eyes swept in swift, hawk-like assessment, over the four warriors. "It seems to me that according to your rules Khan, there is only one winner today."

Lucian and Kraven both stepped back letting Sabas and Soren jump up and move away from each other. The four glared at each other warily.

"Indeed, My Lady," Khan agreed. "Soren and Sabas have both been pinned and Kraven has been disarmed. All three of you have therefore lost. Lucian, therefore, is the winner." Khan clapped Lucian on the shoulder in congratulations and approval.

Kraven glared daggers at Lucian, but Lucian just bowed respectfully to Sabine. The rest of the fighters followed suit.

Sabine resumed addressing the fighters. "Thank you Death Dealers. You did well. I appreciate your help with this pet project of mine. You may go back to your patrols for this evening." Kraven and Soren bowed once more and left the training ground. Once they were gone, Sabine continued. "Khan, your students have succeeded in passing their first test. It is good timing, good timing indeed. I have a task for both of them to commence in two days time. You will be unable to train either of them further during that time. I will let you know when they may return to you for further instruction."

Once the Death Dealers left, Sabas's body relaxed and he let himself look back to Aleeria. He tried to tell her with his eyes that he was fine, to reassure the worry he still saw in her features. Aleeria's eyes had never left Sabas. Her body sang with relief that the fight was over. As soon as Sabine suggested that she had a special project that would involve Sabas, electricity sailed between them, a hot, demanding awareness of need and possibility. Aleeria delightedly hoped that Sabine's task involved some sort of work inside the House of Markus, something she'd need to bathe Sabas for. Sabas seemed to be thinking along the same lines because a smile slid across his lips, slow and entangling, with a dangerous glitter in his eyes that suddenly had Aleeria feeling flushed. She hoped, Sabine hadn't caught it.

Khan nodded in response to Sabine's announcement, "As you wish my Lady."

Sabine nodded back at Khan by way of concluding their conversation and then began to leave the balcony for the castle proper. She noticed Aleeria taking a long backwards look at Sabas before leaving the terrace and resisted the urge to shepherd her inside. It was difficult because Sabine could see that Aleeria was nearly soaked to the skin and had still stopped shivering. It was not a good sign. Sabine made a mental note to get Aleeria into a warm fur and drinking some hot tea as soon as they returned. On the other hand, a few more moments wouldn't make much difference and rushing Aleeria away from watching Sabas seemed cruel.

* * *

Once back within her central rooms, Sabine sat down in a large chair by the fire and gestured for Aleeria to do the same. She sent another servant for tea and tucked a fur that had been warming by the fire around Aleeria. "You need to change your clothes shortly Aleeria." Sabine commanded. "But first, let me outline your duties now that Sabas has completed the first phase of his training. I would like you to clean Sabas up again. He and Lucian will be serving as guards in our House for the next few weeks while the Death Dealers are out on several longer-range patrols. The result being that there are less men to guard within as they are serving along the castle walls. Sabas and Lucian will fill that gap. Although, at first it will be mainly just Sabas because Lucian is required, as castle blacksmith, to make sure the Death Dealers are well-armed first."

Aleeria nodded, not daring to speak as she was certain any words she attempted would come out as an unintelligible series of squeaks. She would bathe Sabas and then he would be here, in the House for weeks.

"If Sabas performs his duties well," Sabine continued, "he will guard you with Lucian during the Dark Moon phase in three weeks time and then take over that duty in the months afterwards."

In a feat Aleeria could only attribute to long years of practice, she buried her reactions and feelings down, letting only a small amount that she felt was appropriate show. "As you wish Mistress. I would be most happy to prepare Sabas for re-entry into our home."

"I will not expect you to need to bathe him regularly. In fact, I expect him to pay attention to what you do and then next time he will bath himself, you will only make sure he has done so properly. From then on, I will expect him to keep himself clean to that standard. If he is as intelligent as he seems, this should be no great obstacle. For now, though, you should focus your energies on warming up. If you would like to observe Sabas and Lucian cleaning themselves from the tunnels I mentioned, you may do so to gage how much you will need to instruct him. Lucian already has mastered the art of keeping himself clean when it's appropriate, so I'm not concerned about him. Lucian has spent more of his life among the Vampires though, rather than toiling in the yard."

Aleeria again nodded, barley restraining her enthusiasm. "That sounds like a wise plan Mistress. I will head down to the tunnels at dawn to gage how difficult my task will be tomorrow evening."

Sabine smiled. "Excellent, the matter is settled then."

* * *

Aleeria returned to her room, changed her clothes, and huddled under her furs until she was warm again. It seemed to take hours. All through this phase of warming up, the events of the first part of the evening seemed to swim through her thoughts in a hazy and unfocused sort of way. Aleeria saw glimpses of the fight, of Sabas watching her, of her conversation with Sabine regarding Sabas's care. The hypothermia spun her thoughts around in her head like candy, adding images of every interaction she and Sabas had ever had or that she had imagined until she had no sense of what was real and what wasn't, only a growing, desperate, all-consuming need to see him.

Aleeria somehow managed to walk down to the kitchens and eat some dinner. No one seemed to notice her, which helped because she was not in any condition to communicate with others. Her mind was in a strange, childlike state of disorientation. When the night began to give way to dawn, Aleeria gathered her cape and the furs and following Sabine's instructions, she went to the tunnel, her need to see Sabas enhanced by time, distance, and the extreme cold that still hadn't fully left her, to near mythic proportions. Excitement built in her blood until it was all-consuming and her entire focus funneled down to seeing _her _Lycan again.

Mist filled the tunnel as she drew near to the opening on the other side. Aleeria edged close to it carefully and then laid out the furs and settled herself belly down to observe. Sabas and Lucian were in high spirits as they entered the cave with the waterfall. That much Aleeria could tell from her perch, which lay perpendicular to the waterfall. She saw both Lucian and Sabas strip off their tunics and lay them aside. The dirt and blood on their chests was more evident with their tunics off as it lay all over their skin except for the sharp outlines of the clean skin where their clothes had protected them. Aleeria noted that Lucian had a well-sculpted form. He was after all, the alpha of the pack and she's expected little else, still he didn't make her skin feel like it was glowing with awareness. Sabas on the other hand, seeing him again, even half-revealed to her eager, hungry eyes was enough to make a flush sweep through her. She saw the streaks of blood where there were cuts healing and she couldn't wait to fuss over him the following night as she told him how well he'd done. Aleeria could see their mouths moving, but between the roar of the waterfall and the distance between them, she couldn't hear anything distinctive, only the rise and fall of the tone of their voices.

Lucian grinned at Sabas. "I still can't believe that went as well as it did. I can't believe we fought two Death Dealers on their orders and essentially beat them both."

"I was pinned if you recall," Sabas argued.

"Yes, but you disarmed him first, thus preventing him from winning anything. Technically, you won and he cheated by continuing the fight after you disarmed him."

"I notice no one mentioned that though." Sabas grumbled.

"Well, they couldn't have the Death Dealers both lose so thoroughly to a pair of Lycans. It would be bad for morale." Lucian explained companionably. "Still, Sabine noticed and now, you will get to see your lady friend tomorrow while I toil in the smithy."

Sabas grinned. "True enough. Should we be expecting company this morning?" He asked curiously, referring to Sonja's frequent visits.

"No," Lucian replied. "We're meeting elsewhere tonight so she's not seen disappearing in the same part of the castle too often. I'm just going to rinse off and go." He explained, striping off his pants and tossing them in a pile with his tunic.

Aleeria, unseen by either of them, averted her eyes. Mostly. Still, while she could certainly appreciate Lucian's body, she hoped she'd never be in a position to bathe him as well. It would be most awkward as they knew each other so well and both knew the other had someone else they desired even if Aleeria was blissfully ignorant of the identity of Lucian's lover.

Lucian moved under the waterfall, scrubbing fiercely at himself in a hurry to be clean and off to see his beloved Sonja. Sabas sat on the large flat rock and took his time removing his pants in an attempt to not ruin them and being mindful of the gash that was still bleeding. He unbuckled the right side of his pants to his waist, exposing his entire leg. The gash went from just above his knee to his hip and was deep, nearly to the bone, which is why it still bled. If he could get his collar off, he could have shape shifted to speed the healing along. Instead, he needed to eat, rest, and wait it out. Still, if he'd been human, he wouldn't have survived it. One thing Sabas could say for the future of his pants was that at least it was a clean cut. Still, he didn't have a spare pair of pants. He hoped Aleeria could fix them while she cleaned him up.

Aleeria forgot Lucian was there entirely as she saw Sabas begin to remove his pants, first because she recalled vividly when she'd removed them herself months ago, but then with concern when she saw the blood. There seemed to be an awful lot of it. Sabas finished removing his pants and moved to the water to clean off the blood that had dried. Once it was clean, Aleeria could see with great relief that the gash seemed to be closing and the bleeding was just slowing to just a trickle.

"How's your leg?" Lucian asked as he cleaned the healing cuts littering his arms.

Sabas grimaced. "It's in far better shape than my pants. I have an indecent amount of leg showing and no spares obviously. I hope Aleeria can mend it tomorrow."

Lucian looked at him, confused. "Mend your leg?"

Sabas chuckled. "No, I hope she can mend this pair of pants. Get your head out of the water."

"Good idea. I'm all done." Lucian decided. Outside of the water, he shook away the excess water and then started tugging his clothes back on.

"My leg would be a lot better if it were a Full Moon."

Lucian nodded in understanding. "Well, I'm off. I'll see you in a few days at the Full Moon. I think we'll be the ones chained by the gates."

Sabas nodded. "Say hello to your lady for me."

Lucian grinned roguishly. "You do the same."

Once Lucian left, Sabas resumed cleaning himself. There was a sort of quiet peace at being alone with the waterfall throbbing around him. With no one to worry about and no one around, Sabas just let his mind drift. He thought about Aleeria, looking so concerned on the balcony as she watched the fight. He loved the deep blue dress she'd worn. He hoped he'd see her in it again soon, but up close. Even better, he hoped he'd take it off of her.

Sabas closed his eyes and imagined she was there with him now to tend to his wounds. He could see her taking off her cape and slowly removing her blue dress. Then he saw her bending in her chemise, to examine his leg and how her face flushed as his furless tail came to life. He could see how the chemise clung to her soaking wet body and he had to pull her against him because the water was so cold and Lycans tended to be warmer than humans, especially when they were well-fed. Even cold as he was now from the expenditure of energy needed to heal and for the fight itself, he would still be warmer than Aleeria. He could imagine quite well how she would slip and slide against him under the pounding water.

Aleeria was lost in a very similar fantasy herself, enhanced by watching him run his hands over his wet, naked body. She could see Sabas bound for her to clean him, but they were in the cave and alone. There was no chance of interruption. He was bound just under the mist of the waterfall and it swallowed them both in the sound and wetness. The cold water pulsed so fiercely around them that it erased all sensation except the heat pooling in the places their bodies touched. Then there weren't any chains and his arms were all around her, pulling her closer until she couldn't tell where he ended and she began, she was just lost in a world of sensation. Soon her day dream dissolved into blissful unconsciousness.

Aleeria slept there in a place of such emotional bliss that she didn't notice that she was cold, wet, and starting to get feverish. When she finally woke up, she felt terrible. She dragged herself and the furs back to her room and made herself some tea. Then she built a fire in her room and oozed into bed. Her throat felt like it was on fire and so did her body, but her bones felt like ice under her skin. Aleeria shook and moaned and fell into a fitful sleep. She didn't wake until nightfall and Sabine entered her room, concern etched over her face. It wasn't like Aleeria to over-sleep, so Sabine had come to check on her. A quick glance was enough to tell her that Aleeria was quite ill. Sabine called for one of the other servants to bring fresh bedding and furs and to stoke the fire. Sabine then had them bring broth, and more tea with honey. Aleeria accepted everything with barely conscious passivity. When she was conscious, Sabine explained that Aleeria could not wash Sabas in her condition and that she would have Erika bathe him and Aleeria could see him while he guarded the House when she was well.

Aleeria pleaded deliriously for no other to bathe Sabas in her stead, the fever having stolen any semblance of decorum. Sabine glanced at the waxing Moon out her window and decided that another day or so to wait wouldn't hurt. She told Khan to take Sabas to the smithy to assist Lucian until Aleeria was well enough to bathe him in a few days. Sabas was concerned when he heard the news, but there was little he could do.

Two days later in spite of Aleeria's best efforts, she was still sick, though much better. Sabine explained firmly that Erika would bathe Sabas the following night and Aleeria could go down and inspect Erika's work later the following evening if she was well enough, but she could not allow herself to get wet and risk getting sicker again. Still utterly exhausted from her illness, Aleeria could only acquiesce to Sabine's decision, but a terrible sense of dread crept into her belly at the thought of vile Erika bathing _her _Lycan. However, there was nothing she could do, but focus on getting well and hope that Erika didn't do any irreparable damage. Whatever the outcome, she knew it would be a very long wait while Erika assumed her duties. Aleeria hoped she'd at least be well enough to inspect Sabas so they had a little private time together to talk and fix whatever Erika might have done or said, because Aleeria wasn't sure how easy privacy would be to come by once Sabas served inside the House of Markus. Bearing all that in mind, Aleeria rolled over into a fitful sleep, hoping she'd feel far healthier when she awoke again.

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A/N: Chapter 17 is underway. Please Read & Review.


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